


love is a dog from hell

by toffeethecoffee



Category: GOT7
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Christmas, Eventual Smut, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Jaebum and Yugyeom are brothers, Jinyoung just wants christmas cookies, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pseudo-Cheating, its jingyeom i swear, seems like jjp at first but its not
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-29
Updated: 2019-03-19
Packaged: 2019-08-09 11:24:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16449035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toffeethecoffee/pseuds/toffeethecoffee
Summary: jaebum needs a boyfriend to bring home for christmas, and jinyoung wants christmas cookies. jinyoung doesnt anticipate jaebums brother, who he had spoken about with disfavor, to be what-or, who-he ends up wanting instead.or, the one where jaebum and yugyeom are brothers, and jaebum has jinyoung pretend to be his boyfriend to bring home for christmas.





	1. if you do

"Ok, but i _need_ to have a boyfriend before i go home for Christmas. My Mom is constantly hounding me about being single." Jaebum explained, keeping a straight face as Mark, Jackson, and Jinyoung laughed their asses off. "You can't just, i don't know, lie? And say you have one, but he couldn't come with you to visit home?" Mark suggested, after calming himself down.

Jaebum shook his head. "Nope, my Mom would ask to video call him _every day_ of Christmas break."He explained. Jackson chimed in with an idea. "Well, one of us could pretend to be your boyfriend. I wouldn't mind. Your Mom cooks really good food." He said, a suggestive smile on his face. "No way." Was Jaebum's response, "I'd feel bad for my Mom if i let you and my little brother, Yugyeom, even within fifty feet of each other. I'd take Mark or Jinyoung over you, to be honest." He said, half-joking.

"Sorry, JB, I've gotta visit my parents in the States this year. What about you, Jinyoung? You wanna pretend to be JB's boyfriend for a couple weeks?" Mark replied, looking over to Jinyoung. "Hmm." Jinyoung pretended to consider it. "What kind of food does your Mom cook for Christmas?" He asked, a joking tone in his voice.

Jaebum answered quickly, "Well, she makes a lot of different stews, since it's so cold outside, and we also bake Christmas cookies together." Jinyoung looked at Jaebum with consideration. "Please, Jinyoung? I'm desperate here." Jaebum pleaded.

Mark and Jackson were holding in laughter, watching as Jinyoung was essentially given no choice in being Jaebum's fake boyfriend. It was either help your friend, or look like an ass. Really, his parents were working during the holidays this year, so he had nothing else to do anyway. "..Whatever, i'll go to Goyang with you. But if we don't bake Christmas cookies, I'm suing you."Jinyoung warned.

Jaebum smiled, "Thank you, Jinyoung. And i promise, we will bake cookies. My mom would go crazy if we refused."

"Alright, well, now that _that's_ taken care of, who wants to copy my math homework?" Mark said, pulling out a math worksheet. Jackson raised his hand.

-

"So, when are you guys leaving?" Mark asked Jinyoung as they walked through the school's halls, heading to class. Jinyoung shrugged. "I don't even know. Today was the last day before break, yeah? Maybe we'll leave tomorrow." He guessed. Jaebum hadn't really talked to him about anything, just thanked him profusely. "You're gonna actually pretend to be his boyfriend?" Mark asked, a playful tone to his voice. "Or are you gonna _become_ his boyfriend?" Jinyoung stuck his tongue out. "No way." Is all he responds with. It's not that Jaebum isn't attractive, he just..isn't Jinyoung's type. Mark isn't too convinced. "Yeah, sure." He says, and their conversation on the topic ends there.

They both eventually reach the dormitory, heading to their respective rooms to finish off the day. Jaebum was already in the room, packing a suitcase, when Jinyoung arrives. "Hey, JB. Packing already?" Jinyoung asks, letting the heavy weight of his school bag fall from his shoulder. Jaebum nods as he folds a shirt. "Should i pack too? I don't even know when we're leaving." Jinyoung says, mostly to himself, although Jaebum replies anyways."We're _hopefully_ going to be leaving early tomorrow morning, but you never know, what with Seoul's traffic during this time of year." Jaebum sighs to himself.

Jinyoung nods, grabbing his suitcase from the closet, and beginning to pack the essentials for a long trip such as this. He doesn't know _exactly_ how long they'll be staying, but he packs outfits for two weeks to be safe. "Hey, thanks. Really. Like, seriously. I know we were all just joking about it before class today, but it really means a lot that you're willing to do this for me." Jaebum says, breaking the comfortable silence between them. Jinyoung rolls his eyes playfully, "Who says i'm doing this for you? I just want Christmas cookies." He says. Jaebum and Jinyoung both laugh. "I'm just kidding. You're my best friend, man. Of course i'm willing to pretend to be your boyfriend in front of your parents. Besides, my family is working during the holidays, and it'll be nice to spend Christmas with you and your family." He says, a smile adorning his face as he finishes packing his suitcase. 

"I'm not sure if you'll stick to that after meeting my little brother, but i'm glad you think that for now." Jaebum says, half-joking. "Come on, your brother can't be _that_ bad." Jinyoung replies, earning a snort from Jaebum. "You haven't met him yet." Jaebum finishes packing, smiling as he puts his suitcase aside. Jinyoung laughed.

They said their goodnights to each other, climbing into bed to try and get as much sleep as possible before their early wake-up tomorrow. Jinyoung checked his phone for a few minutes, before finally shutting his eyes and letting sleep wash over his body. 

-

"Jinyoung, wake up! There's no time to sleep, we have to be gay in less than three hours!" Jaebum threw a pillow over to the sleepy Jinyoung, who groaned, threw the pillow back, and proceeded to roll out of bed and onto the floor. "What time is it?" Jinyoung asked, still laying on the floor. 

"Time to wake up." Jaebum responded, reaching a hand out and helping Jinyoung off of the floor. "We have to get going in about thirty minutes. Since it's pretty early, hopefully there's minimal traffic. Go ahead and get ready, i'll pack our stuff in the car." Jinyoung nodded, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as Jaebum left with their bags. He quickly put on the outfit he had chosen the night before, grabbing his phone, and heading downstairs to Jaebum's car.

Mark, Jackson, and Jaebum were all standing outside when he arrived. "We just wanted to say bye." Mark said, seeing Jinyoung's slightly confused expression. "I'll miss you guys. Make sure to text me every day. Please." Jackson said, pulling Jinyoung in for a hug. Jinyoung hugged him back, telling him that he'd definitely text him every day. "It's not like I'm moving away, though. I'm just hanging out with JB and his family for a few weeks." 

"But still.."Jackson said, "I'll miss you guys." He said, a soft look on his face. "Jackson, it's too early for this. We love you, all that jazz, but we have to leave. See you soon, i'll text you." Jaebum opened the car door for Jinyoung, before moving to the other side of the car, and getting in himself. Mark winked at Jinyoung, and Jinyoung stuck his tongue out. 

The car ride was mostly silent, spare a few small talk conversations about various topics. Jaebum said they had to arrive before 9, so that he could help his Mom with decorating the house, and it was around 7 when they finally left.

"You aren't allergic to cats, are you?" Jaebum asked, his tone slightly worried. Jinyoung shook his head. "I don't think so. Why?" He responded, looking over to Jaebum. "Well, we have a cat. Her name is Nora, and i just wanted to make sure she would be able to wander freely around the house, without having to worry about you." Jaebum explained. "Oh. That's nice, I like cats." Jinyoung said, looking out his window at the busy roads. They were only about fifteen minutes away from Jaeum's house, and Jinyoung was nervous. They definitely didn't act like a couple, would his parents catch on? Maybe they can spend as much time away from his parents as possible. They can just stay in his room, and pretend to have sex, or something. That way his parents won't figure out they aren't actually together.

The rest of the fifteen minutes went by uneventfully, and Jinyoung was brought out of his daydreams by a soft push on his shoulders and Jaebum's voice telling him, "We're here, Jinyoung."


	2. between us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jinyoung is welcomed into the lim household with open arms, and everyone thinks jinyoung and jaebum are having sex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i got so excited about this story,,so i wrote another chapter,,(: please enjoy

"Jaebum! I'm so happy to see you, my son!" A middle-aged woman, who Jinyoung assumes to be Jaebum's mother, runs towards him as soon as they walk inside. Jaebum's face instantly lights up, enveloping his mother in a hug. She pulls away after a few seconds, looking behind Jaebum at Jinyoung. Jinyoung waves. 

"Don't be rude, introduce me to your friend!" Jaebum's mother gives him a small slap on the arm. Jaebum turns to Jinyoung. "Mom, this is actually my boyfriend, Jinyoung." Jaebum explains, apprehension lacing his voice. "It's nice to finally meet you, Mrs.Lim." Jinyoung says in the sweetest voice he can manage this early in the morning, and holds out his hand. 

Jaebum's mom seems impressed, as she shakes hands with Jinyoung. "Don't bother with all of the 'Mrs.' business! Just call me Sunhee." She laughed, pulling Jinyoung in for a hug. "I'm happy you decided to spend your Christmas with us, Jinyoung. Jaebum hasn't had..the _best_ of luck when it comes to relationships, so him bringing you _home_ like this, it's good news, to say the least!" Sunhee moved aside, letting them walk further inside the house. "I was worried something was wrong _down there_ , you know? But now i don't have to worry!" She half-joked, patting an embarrassed Jaebum on the back, before walking over to a door, and knocking, calling out for "Yugyeom."

"Now i see why you needed a boyfriend for Christmas. At least now your mom won't think you have erectile dysfunction, even after we 'break-up'." Jinyoung laughed, his smile only widening as he saw the borderline-murderous look Jaebum gave him. Jinyoung gave him an equally ferocious look, holding it for a few seconds, before they both fell into laughter. 

Another person walked up to them, slightly taller than both of them, (considerably taller than Jaebum's mom), and pulled Jaebum into a hug. "Jaebum, you're home! Nora said she missed you." He, who Jinyoung assumed to be the "Yugyeom" that Jaebum talked about, beamed. He seemed extremely happy to see Jaebum, so Jinyoung didn't think their relationship was bad, as he had previously assumed, due to all of the comments Jaebum had made. "How many times do i have to tell you, Yugyeom? I'm your _hyung_ , stop calling me as if you were just my friend." Jaebum gave Yugyeom a small tap on his forehead, causing Yugyeom to stick out his tongue at Jaebum.

"Who's this?" He asked, looking at Jinyoung. Jinyoung waved. "I'm JB's boyfriend, nice to meet you." He said, holding out his hand. Yugyeom nodded. "Cool. Nora is asleep in my room, if you wanna go say hi." Yugyeom turned his attention away from Jinyoung, without shaking his hand, and went back to conversing with his brother. Jinyoung slowly lowered his ignored hand, suddenly feeling very awkward in such an unfamiliar house. Sunhee had made Jinyoung feel welcome, and comfortable, whereas Yugyeom is making him feel like a stranger, and sure, he isn't _actually_ Jaebum's boyfriend, but Yugyeom and Sunhee don't know that. Maybe he'll just try to avoid Yugyeom as much as possible. He can hang out with Sunhee, if anything.

"Come on, Jinyoung." Jaebum held out a hand to Jinyoung, an apologetic smile on his face. Jinyoung took his hand gratefully, letting himself be led to Yugyeom's room, Yugyeom following behind them. The woman of the hour, Nora, was laying sound asleep in the middle of Yugyeom's bed. Jaebum immediately pulled Jinyoung over, kneeling on the floor to be eye-level with the sleeping cat. Jinyoung took out his phone, recording a video of Jaebum softly petting Nora, whispering sweet greetings to her. Jinyoung got a good 30-second video, before Jaebum tugged on his arm, bringing him down on the floor with him. Yugyeom sat at his desk behind them, completely ignoring the "love-birds".

"Nora, this is my boyfriend, Jinyoung." Jaebum pulled Jinyoung's hand to the now-awake cat, and let him pet Nora. Jinyoung gave a weird look to Jaebum. They were even gonna lie to the cat? Somehow, Jinyoung thought she wouldn't be much of a snitch if she knew the truth. Jaebum didn't respond vocally to Jinyoungs strange look, he just pointed to Yugyeom, who sat not even five feet away from them. Jinyoung nodded, turning his attention back to Nora, who meowed softly at them for disturbing her sleep. "Jaebum, are you gonna go help your boyfriend unpack or what? You can't spend all your time in my room." Yugyeom piped up, not even looking at Jaebum and Jinyoung. What happened to the little brother that was excited to see his older brother? Now Yugyeom just seems like an irritable old man.

Jaebum just rolled his eyes playfully. "Whatever. Come on, Jinyoung, let's go, and stop disturbing mister-grumpy." He taunted, walking out of Yugyeom's room with Jinyoung following close behind.

-

After Jaebum and Jinyoung had moved all of their luggage into Jabum's room, Sunhee knocked on the door. "Are we decent?" She called. Jaebum responded with a "Yes, come in." Sunhee opened the door, her long hair tied into a messy bun, and sweat falling down her tired face. "I'm sorry to bother you two, but there's a box of decorations in the garage that i just _cannot_ lift, and was wondering if one of you guys could try." She said, slightly out of breath. "Sure, Mom." Jaebum responded. "We'd love to help." Jinyoung nodded

Sunhee sighed in relief, leading the two boys to the garage, and pointing to a rather large box. "It's this one. I think it has all of our wreathes and ornaments in it, which could explain the weight. I usually have your dad get that one, but he's working late tonight." She explained. "It's really no problem, Sunhee. I make JB carry stuff for me all the time." Jinyoung joked, patting Jaebum on the back softly. "You don't _make_ me do _anything_. i _offer_ to carry your stuff. There's a difference." Jaebum responded playfully. Sunhee smiled fondly at their interactions. 

"Mom, do you want me to get the box? I think these two are busy staring into each other's eye or whatever." Yugyeom asked from the doorway, earning a snort from Jaebum. "Well, gee, sorry that i'm happy and in-love." He said, more or less under his breath, but still loud enough for Yugyeom to hear. Jinyoung felt very awkward again. "I'll get the box for you, Sunhee." He said with a small smile, leaning down and grabbing the heavy box from the bottom, and bringing it inside. It wasn't exactly heavy, but then again, Sunhee was in her late-forties, and probably didn't have much experience with carrying heavy things. 

"Where do you want it?" He asked, standing in the living room. "Oh, over by that corner. That's where we put the tree." Sunhee responded, pointing to the far left corner of the living room. Jinyoung nodded, placing the box near the corner gently, before looking back up, seeing Jaebum and Sunhee's thankful expressions. Yugyeom lost interest in the conversation, choosing instead to play with Nora, who was trying to nap on a windowsill near the kitchen. "Thank you, Jinyoung." Sunhee said, walking over to Jinyoung. "Those two, sometimes they're attached at the hip, sometimes they can't even be in the same room. They've been like that since they were kids." She said, watching as Jaebum had migrated over to Nora as well, the two brothers annoying her as she tried to rest, even though two minutes ago, you would've thought they were going to tear each other's heads off. 

"Oh, speaking of that, I have some baby photos of Jaebum to show you later!" Sunhee said, her volume rising with excitement. Jaebum's quickly turned to look at his mom. "No you do not, Mom. You have absolutely zero baby pictures that will be shown to Jinyoung." He said. Jinyoung laughed. "Please, show me everything you have." He said, sticking his tongue out at Jaebum. 

-

Jinyoung and Jaebum spent the next few hours helping Sunhee hang decorations on the walls, and just when they were about to start outside, they were interrupted by the sound of the front door unlocking, and Nora meowed, hopping off of the windowsill, where she had finally gotten a good nap, to wait at the door, meowing loudly as an older man, who Jinyoung assumed to be Jaebum's dad, walked through the door. He laughed quietly, leaning down to pet Nora a few times, before standing back up, and greeting his wife with a kiss. "Hi, how was work?" She asked, picking up a tangled ball of Christmas lights, attempting to untangle it. Her husband laughed, taking the lights, and quickly untangling them for her. "It was fine, thank you." He replied.

"There's someone you'll wanna meet." She said, looking over to Jinyoung, the lights still in her hand. "That's Jaebums _boyfriend_." She sang. "Aren't you so excited? He brought Jinyoung home for Christmas!" Sunhee looked like she was about to bounce off of the walls. "Boyfriend?" He asked. "Jaebum, why didn't you tell us you were dating someone?" He asked, smiling widely, turning to look at his son, and a very awkward Jinyoung, who was in the middle of untangling more lights. Jaebum just shrugged.

Jaebum's dad stepped towards Jinyoung, reaching out to shake his hand. "Please, call me Jungwoo. It's very nice to meet you." Jinyoung nodded, taking Jungwoo's hand. "It's nice to meet you too." Jinyoung said, smiling. Jungwoo let go of Jinyoung's hand, looking at him kindly. "Please continue to make my son happy." He said.

"Okay, party's over, please stop stealing my boyfriend, Dad." Jaebum nudged his way into the conversation, grabbing Jinyoung's hand, and holding it up. "We're gonna go start hanging up lights outside." Jaebum said, grabbing a box of string lights, and dragging Jinyoung out the front door. "Okay, we won't bother you!" Sunhee called, winking at Jinyoung as they left.

-

Jinyoung and Jaebum _actually_ hung up string lights, contrary to _popular belief_ , for about another hour or two, before Yugyeom came outside. "Hey, I'm outside now, so if you guys are making out or something, please stop. Mom said dinner was ready, so, you should come inside now." He called, still standing on the porch.

"We'll be inside in a second!" Jaebum called back, beginning to pack up the string lights they didn't use today. "I don't think your brother likes me very much." Jinyoung said, helping him pack up the lights. "That's not it, Jinyoung. He's like that to everyone." Jaebum explained, picking up the box. "Come on, let's go eat. Jackson wasn't kidding when he said my mom could cook." He smiled at Jinyoung, leading him inside.

When they got inside, Sunhee was still in the kitchen, trying to finish off the last few details of dinner. "Yugyeom, could you set the table?" She called to her son. Yugyeom hummed in agreement, getting up from the couch to get everything ready. 

It only took a few minutes before everyone was seated at the table. Jinyoung had Jaebum on his right, and Yugyeom right in front of him, so he hoped there would be no altercations while they ate. Jaebum served him, giving him what he assumed to be dakgalbi. "Eat up, Jinyoung." Sunhee told him, smiling fondly. Jinyoung nodded, and began to eat. Sunhee was a _really_ good cook. 

Dinner finished quickly. Jinyoung offered to wash dishes, but Jungwoo told him not to worry about it, and just to go ahead and spend time with Jaebum, before winking. Jaebum was already in his room when Jinyoung went inside. Instead of saying hello, Jinyoung looked at him with a serious expression, and said, "We need to have sex now", which caused an unknown figure in the room to choke, and when Jinyoung turned to the sound, he saw Yugyeom standing at Jaebum's CD collection. Jaebum couldn't hold in his laughter, and Jinyoung felt embarrassed, even though if anything, Yugyeom hearing the joke _helped_ them pretend to be dating. 

"You heard the man," Jaebum said, after calming down a bit. "Once you find that CD you were looking for, please exit." Yugyeom pretended to gag. "You don't have to tell me twice." He said. Once Yugyeom found whatever CD, he left the room in a flash. Jaebum stayed silent for a whole second, before laughing again, and Jinyoung, although embarrassed, couldn't hold in his laughter either. "What was that about?" Jaebum asked. Jinyoung wiped the tears from his eyes, sitting next to Jaebum on the bed. "When i was leaving the kitchen, your dad told me to spend time with you, and then he _winked_. You know, that's the second time i've been winked at by one of your parents today." He said accusingly. Jaebum laughed. "Yeah, but now they aren't hounding me every three seconds about _not_ having a boyfriend, and hopefully, next Christmas, they won't either, since i'll be sad about our break-up." Jinyoung hummed in agreement. "I should probably message Jackson, before he goes crazy." Jinyoung said, grabbing his phone from where he had left it on Jaebum's nightstand earlier.

He made sure to send Jackson the video of Jaebum playing with Nora, just to annoy Jaebum, before telling both Mark and Jackson goodnight.

"Want me to turn off the light?" Jaebum asked after they had both finished getting ready for bed. Jinyoung nodded, climbing into bed. The only light left in the room was moonlight, coming in from Jaebum's window. Jinyoung was pretty tired from all of the excitement today, and went to sleep quickly.

He was, however, awoken a few hours later by the feeling of Nora stepping on his face, trying to find a comfortable place to sleep. Jinyoung couldn't be mad at her. He carefully moved her off of his face, sitting up, and rubbing his eyes. He grabbed his phone off of the nightstand, looking at the time. His phone read "03:26", and he silently groaned. 

Jinyoung got out of bed, hoping to go wash his face with water. As soon as he stepped out of Jaebum's room, he heard a small gasp. "Oh my god, Jinyoung. You scared the living shit out of me." Yugyeom whispered from the couch. Jinyoung apologised. "Nora woke me up, so i decided to try and wash my face before going to sleep." He explained. 

Yugyeom just nodded, letting Jinyoung go into the bathroom, and quickly wash his face. When Jinyoung stepped out of the bathroom, Yugyeom spoke up. "Hey, do you want a glass of water? I was about to get one for myself, since i can't sleep very well." He asked. Jinyoung was confused by his sudden kindness, but accepted anyways. "That would be nice, thank you." He said, smiling. Yugyeom smiled back, "Okay, cool, just wait here, and i'll go get it." He gestured to the couch. 

Jinyoung sat down, looking around at the Christmas decorations they had put up earlier. Yugyeom returned quickly, two glasses of water in his hands. He handed one to Jinyoung, who accepted it gratefully. "Thanks, Yugyeom." Jinyoung said, taking a sip. Yugyeom rolled his eyes playfully. "You don't have to thank me that many times, Jinyoung." He said. Just then, Nora came walking out of Jaebum's room, and looked around the living room, before walking back over to Jinyoung, and sprawling across his lap. 

"You're lucky you're cute." Jinyoung told her accusingly. Yugyeom laughed quietly at Jinyoung's tone of voice, before reaching over and petting Nora gently. "I feel the same way towards her sometimes." He said. "One time, i guess she was angry that day, but i was trying to pet her as she napped, and she grabbed my hand with her little paws, and just _attacked_ , like, no mercy whatsoever." Yugyeom held up his hand for emphasis. Jinyoung looked at the sleeping Nora, who looked too innocent to attack someone like that, and then looked up at Yugyeom, who was smiling as he told his story. Jinyoung laughed. "Good cat." He told Nora, before petting her. Yugyeom fake-gasped. "How rude. Just wait 'till i tell Jaebum about this." He said, acting offended. 

"By the way, you two didn't actually—you know? Like, while all of us were home?" Yugyeom asked, slight disgust in his voice. Jinyoung laughed. "You're allowed to say sex, Yugyeom. And no, we didn't, don't worry." Yugyeom breathed a slight sigh of relief. "Okay, good. I seriously could _not_ stop thinking about it. I was so grossed out." Yugyeom smiled. "You're pretty okay, Jinyoung. I _guess_ I don't mind if you date my brother." 

"Thanks, i definitely needed your approval, or else i don't know how i would've continued to date him." Jinyoung joked. Yugyeom just stuck his tongue out at Jinyoung. "I should probably go back to bed now." Jinyoung said. "You want me to wash this out?" Jinyoung held up his empty glass of water. Yugyeom just shook his head. "I'll wash it out with mine. Goodnight, Jinyoung." Jinyoung thanked him, setting his glass down. "Goodnight, Yugyeom." He said, carefully moving the sleeping Nora, before heading back into Jaebum's room. He crawled back into the warm bed, and when he closed his eyes, sleep came almost immedietly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woah,,jinyoung and yugyeom,,,got along?  
> for now. uwu  
> every comment and kudos adds a year to my lifespan :DD


	3. cereal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> christmas tree shopping! also, nora is adorable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow hello! thank you for reading this far haha enjoy chapter three i guess :V

"Jinyoung, wake up," Jaebum lightly shook Jinyoung awake, "We're going shopping for a Christmas tree today." Jinyoung opened his eyes, annoyed and still tired. He was immediately face-to-face with Jaebum, who only shook him again. "Get up, loser." Jaebum said.

Jinyoung groaned, rolling over and hiding under the warmth of the blanket for a few seconds, before sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "What'd you say we're doing today?" he asked, sleep still present in his face. Jaebum laughed at Jinyoung's confused, tired expression. "Go shower, nerd. It'll wake you up."

Jinyoung nodded, yawning as he got up from the bed. He grabbed whatever clothes from his bag and headed to the bathroom, making sure to remove Nora from the sink where she was napping, before stepping into the shower.

-

Jinyoung walked back into Jaebum's room, his hair still slightly damp. "Okay, what's the plan today, JB?" He asked, sitting next to Jaebum on the bed. "Well, first, you should probably call Jackson. He's been ringing you for the past fifteen minutes." Jaebum said, holding up Jinyoung's phone, the screen lighting up with another call from Jackson. Jinyoung quickly picked up the phone, apologising profusely once he hears Jackson's worried voice. "I'm sorry, i was in the shower, Jackson." He says, and Jackson just grumbles. "Put him on speaker." Jaebum says, lightly tapping on Jinyoung's arm. Jinyoung nods.

"So what's up, Jackson?" Jinyoung asks, the two of them huddled near Jinyoung's phone. _"I should be asking you guys!"_ Jackson says, _"What's been going on in JJ-Project land?!"_ He asks excitedly. "JJ-Project?" Jaebum asks, amusement in his voice. Jackson laughs. _"Oh yeah, that's what Mark and I have decided to call this whole shenanigan."_ He explains. _"'Cause both of your names start with J. You get it?"_

"Yes, we get it. Also, might i add, this whole 'shenanigan' was _your_ idea, Jackson." Jinyoung said accusingly. Jackson brushed that off with a "Yeah, whatever". "Well, JB just woke me up randomly, and wouldn't tell me why until i called you. So i'm calling you now. What's been going on in, uh, MJ-Project land.." Jinyoung asks, his voice full of fake confidence. Jaebum and Jackson both laughed, Jackson responding with _"Yeah, it's been good, i guess. Mark's leaving tomorrow for LA, so i'll be lonely for a day or two until i blast off too. But that's not what i **meant** Jinyoung. I meant, tell me what's been happening. Do they believe you guys?"_ He asked. 

"Yes, they do. And, to make them believe us _even more_ we have to get off the phone now, 'cause we're going Christmas tree shopping." Jaebum says, earning an excited sound from Jackson. _"Ooh, Christmas tree shopping? Will there be a mistletoe?"_ He asks suggestively.

"Definitely not. Now, we _actually_ have to go. Talk later, bye, Jackson." Jaebum says, hanging up the phone before Jackson can respond. "Ooh, we're going Christmas tree shopping?" Jinyoung asks, leaning forward excitedly. Jaebum nodded. "Yeah, we've got less than two weeks till Christmas, so Mom said we're going to get a tree set up today." He explained, poking Jinyoung on the forehead.

"Come on, let's go."

-

Jungwoo drove the five of them to a local tree farm, with Sunhee in the passenger seat, Jaebum and Jinyoung in the middle seats, and Yugyeom in the back. Jinyoung hadn't ever thought about it, but he's never actually _been_ to a tree farm. The land was vast, but not empty. The Christmas trees seemed to go on for miles. "Do you usually have real trees, Jinyoung?" Sunhee asked from the front seat. Jinyoung shook his head. "No, my family has a fake that we use every year." He explained.

"We used to have a fake, but a family friend convinced me to try real trees one year, and although they require a lot of care, we preferred how they made our house smell more like Christmas time." Jungwoo explained with a laugh.

Jinyoung smiled, looking over to Jaebum as they got out of the car. "Y'know, i've just realised that you never tell me anything about your family. I didn't know about your preference for real trees, and i didn't even know about Nora until we were on the way to your parent's house." He said, earning a laugh from Jaebum.

"It never came up in conversation, i guess." He replied, reaching over to grab Jinyoungs hand in his own. "But it's not like i know everything about you and your family." Jaebum said, sticking his tongue out at Jinyoung.

"Ew. Go be gross and couple-y somewhere else, please. Some of us are trying to enjoy this trip." Yugyeom said, looking at Jinyoung and Jaebum with disdain. Jinyoung looked at him with fake offence. "Hey, you gave me permission last night!" He exclaimed.

"Hey, no, i said i didn't mind that you two were dating. Not that i didn't mind you two being all gross and cute in front of me." Yugyeom replied, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned. "He gave you _permission_?" Jaebum asked. Jinyoung nodded. "Yep. We had a glass of water and he told me i was allowed to date you." Jinyoung explained.

"Alright, come on kids. Stop arguing, it's time to pick a tree!" Sunhee said excitedly. "We're coming, Mom." Jaebum replied, putting an arm around Jinyoung, and following his parents into the tree farm. Yugyeom made a fake gagging sound behind them.

-

"Is this the one we want?" Sunhee asked, standing next to a healthy Fraser fir. Yugyeom nodded excitedly. "Alright. Jungwoo, do you want Jaebum to cut it down this year?" She turned towards her husband, who, in return, looked over to Jaebum.

"You wanna try to impress your boyfriend by cutting down our tree?" Jungwoo asked, holding out the axe. Jaebum rolled his eyes playfully, taking the axe from his father. "Prepare to fall even _more_ in love with me, Jinyoung." Jinyoung replied in the most lovesick voice he could manage. "Aw, as if that's possible, Boo Bear." He poked Jaebum in the arm playfully, for emphasis.

"That was the worst thing i have ever seen in my life." Yugyeom responds, all of his festive energy nowhere to be found. Sunhee only smiled, and Jungwoo laughed at Yugyeom's reaction. "Alright, cut down that tree, Jaebum." Jungwoo called out to Jaebum.

Jaebum nodded, rolled up his sleeves, and began swinging the axe at the bottom of the tree. It didn't take long before the tree fell to it's side, and the family cheered excitedly. "Once we get this tree to the car, I'm gonna check out the gift shop! It's always my favourite part of these trips." Sunhee exclaims, mostly explaining to Jinyoung, as everyone else already assumed she was going to go to the gift shop. "Do you want to come with me, Jinyoung?" She asked. Jinyoung nodded, smiling widely. Who doesn't like gift shops?

-

It was mostly Jungwoo and Yugyeom who carried the tree to the car, and Jinyoung was actually surprised. Yugyeom was unnaturally tall, yeah, but he's strong, too? Not fair.

When Jungwoo and Jaebum were strapping the tree to the top of the car, Sunhee walked over to Jinyoung. "Ready to go?" She asked. Jinyoung hummed in agreement, following her to the gift shop. Yugyeom had gone with them as well, and Jinyoung was a little nervous. Yugyeom had been kind to him the night before, but today, he seemed irritable and less-kind. Jinyoung definitely would've been more comfortable if Jaebum had gone with them as well.

"Ooh, Jinyoung, look at this!" Sunhee called, standing near the sweaters. Jinyoung walked over, seeing that she was looking at a two-person sweater, one side saying "Naughty" and one side saying "Nice".

"Isn't this adorable? You and Jaebum would be so cute in this." Sunhee exclaimed. "Mom, you seem more into their relationship than they are." Yugyeom joked, although Jinyoung isn't sure when he even walked over to them. Sunhee just rolled her eyes playfully. "Jaebum is of marrying age, therefore im _allowed_ to be excited if he has a boyfriend. Especially if he brings that boyfriend home." She nudged Jinyoung playfully.

"Oh my god, you're going to scare him off if you keep mentioning marriage." Yugyeom joked. Jinyoung felt slightly awkward, although it wasn't because of the marriage-speak(him and Jaebum were going to break up almost immediately after the trip is over.), but because Yugyeom seemed less upset with him. He wasn't sure how to feel about that. One second, he's blatantly ignoring him, but the next, he's offering him a glass of water, and telling him stories about his cat.

Sunhee laughed, walking over to the next section of the gift shop. Jinyoung wandered off as well, looking at all of the cute knick-knacks. He picked up a little statuette of a cat in a Santa hat. He sent a photo of it to Jackson.

Sunhee walked over to him, a bag in her hand. "Ready to get going?" She asked, smiling. Jinyoung nodded, and after grabbing Yugyeom, the three of them walked back to the car, where Jungwoo and Jaebum had just finished strapping down the tree. Everyone piled back into the car, and Jungwoo quickly got back on the road.

"Guess what i got at the gift shop!" Sunhee excitedly said, holding up her bag. She took the item out, showing it off to everyone. "It's a countdown," She said. "To tell us how long until Christmas. Isn't it so cute?" Jungwoo hummed in agreement. "I was actually thinking about getting one of those sometime." He claimed.

-

The trip home seemed shorter than the trip there, but to be fair, there was considerably less traffic. Jungwoo unstrapped the tree from the car, and set it on the ground as everyone else got out of the car. "Yugyeom, can you get me a hack saw from the garage?" He asked. Yugyeom nodded, running to grab the saw for his father. "Come on boys, we should set up the tree stand." Sunhee said to Jinyoung and Jaebum. The three of them walked inside, and Sunhee quickly set up the countdown near the door, before running to get the tree stand out of one of the boxes surrounding the corner for the tree.

"Ten days till Christmas, Jinyoung." Jaebum lightly punched Jinyoung in the arm, pointing to the countdown. Jinyoung made a sound of acknowledgement. "Are we leaving after Christmas? Or staying until New Years?" He asked.

"I usually stay for New Years, but if you wanna leave after Christmas we can." Jaebum said. Sunhee was still struggling to find the tree stand in the background.

"Can one of you boys go and check for the tree stand in the garage?" She asked, digging through a box for the third time. "I've got it." Jinyoung said to Jaebum, smiling.

Jinyoung ran over to the garage, not seeing Yugyeom in the corner, near the tools. "Alrighty, tree stand, where are you hiding?" Jinyoung mumbled to himself, looking near all of the unused Christmas decorations. "Come on, buddy, we just wanna put a tree in you." Jinyoung searched through a box, finding pretty much everything but the tree stand. He grunted in frustration. "This is really rude, sir." Jinyoung said to the tree stand, wherever he was hiding.

"Do you always talk to things you're looking for?" Yugyeom asked, standing a few feet away from Jinyoung, with the tree stand in his arms. "We keep the tree stand over by the tools, by the way." Jinyoung turned his head quickly to look at Yugyeom. "Oh gosh, i'm sorry. I'm dumb, please ignore that i did that." He pleaded. Yugyeom laughed, setting the tree stand down near Jinyoung. "No way. This is great blackmail material. Also, she's a 'ma'am', not a sir."

Jinyoung rolled his eyes playfully. "My deepest apologies, ma'am." He says to the stand. "Well, i have orders to take _her_ to the living room." Jinyoung states, rolling up his sleeves, and picking up the tree stand.

Sunhee's face light up into a smile as Jinyoung walked into the living room with the tree stand. "Set it right here please." She pointed to a specific spot on the floor.

As Jinyoung set the stand down, Yugyeom ran through the living room with the hacksaw, bringing it to Jungwoo outside. Sunhee walked to the kitchen, and brought a gallon of water to fill up the stand. Jungwoo came in soon afterwards, him and Yugyeom carrying in the tree. "Is the stand ready?" Jungwoo asked. "Yeah, is she ready?" Yugyeom echoed.

Sunhee laughed playfully. "Since when is our tree stand a lady?" She asked. Yugyeom quickly helped his father set the tree into the stand, before acting fake offended. "I expected this from Jinyoung, but you, Mom? Really?"

Sunhee responded by ruffling his hair, (She had to stand on her toes to reach), and sticking out her tongue at him. "Whatever. Who's ready to decorate?" She asked excitedly, not even waiting for an answer before opening a box full of Christmas decorations.

-

They finished decorating the tree after about an hour, and by the time they were done, Jinyoung had tinsel tied around his head, thanks to Jaebum, and Sunhee had put ornaments in place of her earrings, thanks to a suggestion from Yugyeom. The tree, however, actually looked nice. There were lots of ornaments that obviously had memories attached. (Jinyoung had found one of a photo of baby Jaebum on Santa's lap.)

"JB, wanna take a photo for Jackson?" Jinyoung asked, holding up his phone. Jaebum smiled widely, and nodded. "Sunhee, Yugyeom, you guys wanna be in it too?" He asked, and Sunhee agreed immediately, but Yugyeom replied with "Only if you guys don't do any gross couple stuff in the photo". Jaebum just rolled his eyes before dragging his brother to stand in the frame. Sunhee was standing next to Jaebum, so Yugyeom stood next to Jinyoung as he held up the phone to take a photo in front of the tree.

Jinyoung took a few photos before he was satisfied, and Sunhee asked Jinyoung to send all of them to her. "I want to have them printed." She said with a smile.

Jinyoung immediately sent the photos to Jackson, before putting his phone away, and admiring the tree. There weren't any ornaments at the bottom of the tree, or else Nora would try to play with them, and might knock them off. "Jinyoung, Jaebum, do you guys want to watch 'A Christmas Story' with me and Yugyeom? Unless you two have _other plans_?" Sunhee asked mischievously. In this situation, really, it's either watch the movie, or let your best friend's mom think you're having sex with her son.

"We'd love to watch it with you guys." Jinyoung agreed happily. The four of them settled comfortably on the couch to watch the movie. Jinyoung curled up into Jaebum's side (this isn't the first time they've cuddled; Jinyoung has just gotten into the habit. Blame Jackson.)

-

After the movie had ended, Sunhee suggested they go out to eat somewhere, instead of staying in and cooking. Jungwoo, who had just woken up from a nap, agreed to the idea, and really, the other three were just hungry.

They decided on a nearby diner to eat at, and when they arrived, Jinyoung took a few photos of the night time atmosphere to send to Jackson. He was a slut for aesthetics.

When Jinyoung went to send the photos to Jackson, he saw that there were a few messages that he hadn't seen, since they were sent during the movie.

 **Jackson** : yall are cute lol

 **Jackson** : but who's the tall kid

 **Jackson** : hes making lovey eyes at u jinyoung lol

Jinyoung stared at the messages for a few seconds, confused. Tall kid? Jinyoung looked at the photos he sent Jackson again, and sure enough, in every single one, Yugyeom was looking directly at Jinyoung. Although, he's not sure if he would label Yugyeom's expression as "lovey eyes" per se. Jinyoung texted back a "whatever", and sent the photos, before heading inside with the rest of Jaebum's family, and eating a quick dinner.

Although, the only thing Jinyoung could think of for the entire dinner was the expression Yugyeom had in the photos. It wasn't disdain, as Jinyoung would've expected, but it wasn't very _platonic_ either. He tried to enjoy his meal, and the puns Sunhee was making all night, but he was too distracted.

By the time they got home, he decided to just text Jackson about it tomorrow, and try to get some sleep tonight. Jaebum and him got ready for bed, and Nora meowed loudly at them to be let into the bed as well. Sleep didn't come as easily to Jinyoung as he would've liked, but today was an exciting day, and his mind was still racing with thoughts. He eventually, though, fell fast asleep, with Nora curled up between him and Jaebum.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope that you enjoyed reading that :V   
> every comment and kudos adds a year to my lifespan :V


	4. my luv

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> intense arguments? yes.  
> super smash? bros.  
> hotel? trivago.  
> EDIT: so uh for some reason this chapter decided to just jumble all together when i posted it?? so sorry if you couldn't read it very well, but the problem should be fixed now uwu

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woah sorry this took so long! i've had a bit of trouble coming up with ways to get to my major plot points in this fic oops but yeah please enjoy!

**9 days until Christmas**

This morning, Jinyoung wasn't _rudely_ awoken by Jaebum or Nora, but was allowed to wake up naturally on his own. He didn't get out of bed, but grabbed his phone to check his messages.

Nobody had texted him, although it _was_ nine in the morning, and Jackson was probably still asleep. Jinyoung decided to look at the group photo he had taken _one more time_. He still didn't understand the look Yugyeom had on his face. He seemed to be looking at Jinyoung fondly, and it confused Jinyoung even more. Jinyoung looked very carefully at Yugyeom's facial expression, looking for even a _hint_ of anything other than the love that was clearly present.

Jinyoung then looked to himself in the photo. He had a piece of tinsel tied around his head, and Jaebum was standing next to him, holding Nora, who had a piece of tinsel stuck on her paw. Although Jinyoung doesn't exactly remember him picking her up for the photo.

"Wait a second.." Jinyoung mumbles under his breath, looking closer at Yugyeom's face, and _wow_ , Jackson is an idiot.

The reason he's looking in Jinyoung's direction so sweetly, is because Nora was right next to Jinyoung, and she was acting cute. Jinyoung sighs deeply, sending Jackson a text.

Jackson

hey loser

look closely at the photo again

nora, their cat, is right next to me, dumbass ):< thats why yugyeom is looking like that

Jinyoung set his phone back down, rolling over in the bed. He ran a hand through his hair, and considered going back to sleep, although he wasn't really tired. Jaebum rolled over to face Jinyoung, his eyes still heavy with sleep. 

"Good morning, 'Nyoung." He mumbles out, stretching his arms and yawning, "What time is it?" Jaebum asks, still sprawled out across the bed.

"Nine in the morning." Jinyoung says, shoving Jaebum's arms away. Jaebum grunted in response. "So i should probably get up then, huh?" He asked. 

Jinyoung nodded, and Jaebum sighed before rolling back over and staying there for a few seconds. He eventually sat up, and Jinyoung couldn't hold in his giggles at Jaebum's bed hair. 

"What?" Jaebum asked tiredly. Jinyoung pointed to his hair, and Jaebum made a very impolite gesture towards him.

Jinyoung ignored it. "I'm gonna go brush my teeth." He says. Jaebum mumbles out something along the lines of an "ok" before Jinyoung quickly went to freshen up.

-

"Welcome back. Jackson wants you to call him. Also, i'll be leaving later with Mom." Jaebum stated once Jinyoung entered. Jinyoung hummed in acknowledgement, sitting down next to Jaebum on the bed, and grabbing his phone from the nightstand. Jackson had texted him a few times, and also seemed to have added him into a group chat. He rolled his eyes, calling Jackson's number. Jinyoung put him on speaker

The phone only rang twice before Jackson picked up with a _"Helloo~"_ in what Jinyoung assumed to be the most sing-song voice he could manage.

"What did you want?" Jinyoung deadpanned. How Jackson could manage to be so energetic this early in the morning? Jackson made a dissatisfied grunt.

 _"Good morning to you too, buddy. How's JJ-Project?"_ He asked excitedly. Jinyoung caught Jaebum rolling his eyes at the nickname. 

"Everything is a-okay over here, but please stop calling it that." Jaebum responded. Jinyoung agreed. His phone buzzed with a text, and then another. _"Hey, what's that sound?"_ Jackson asked. 

"It's whatever hellish group chat you put me into. I'm getting notifications from it." Jinyoung responded, looking at the text I.D, which read "JJ-Project" 

_"Oh, yeah! Since Mark is leaving today, i made a group chat for the four of us to keep up with everything. Also, so that you can send more videos and photos of Nora."_ Jackson explained. 

As if on cue, Nora meowed loudly from her napping spot on Jaebum's desk. Although, Jinyoung distinctly remembers falling asleep next to Nora, he doesn't question it. Cats will be cats.

"Yeah, okay, i'll send you _lots_ of Nora photos, but please stop calling me. I love you with my entire heart, and you know this, but talking on the phone with you every day will drive me insane." Jinyoung states. Jackson blew raspberries at Jinyoung in response. Jaebum gets up from the bed, making gestures to the bathroom, saying he was going to get ready to leave.

 _"Whatever, loser. I'm hanging up, make sure to text in the groupchat."_ Jackson says, and before Jinyoung could say anything witty in response, the call ends. Jinyoung mumbles a "shithead", before going to his text messages, and checking out the "JJ-Project" chat.

JJ-Project

**Mark:** what the fuck is this jackson

 **JB:** jacksons on the phone with jinyoung rn lol

 **Mark:** oh

 **Jackson:** its a _groupchat_ mark

Jinyoung rolled his eyes, before typing a response.

JJ-Project

**Mark:** what the fuck is this jackson

 **JB:** jacksons on the phone with jinyoung rn lol

 **Mark:** oh

 **Jackson:** its a _groupchat_ mark

yall are dumb as fuck. 

Jinyoung didn't bother reading the responses he's sure he would receive, but instead, went to Jackson's private chat, where Jackson had responded to his messages earlier.

Jackson

hey loser

look closely at the photo again

nora, their cat, is right next to me, dumbass ):< thats why yugyeom is looking like that

 **Jackson:** oh lmao oops

 **Jackson:** call me im lonely

Jackson's messages made Jinyoung huff. Jackson acted like a needy boyfriend sometimes.

"Come on, loser, i'm about to leave. You don't want to kiss me goodbye?" Jaebum asks from the doorframe. Jinyoung rolls his eyes playfully. "I thought you'd never ask." He replies sarcastically, standing up to follow Jaebum into the living room. 

Yugyeom was sitting on the couch, sipping from a glass of orange juice, and scrolling on his phone. Sunhee was standing in the dining room, digging for something in her purse. 

So where are you going, anyway?" Jinyoung asks, him and Jaebum sitting together on the loveseat. Sunhee chimed in to answer Jinyoung's question. 

"Christmas present shopping! Not for us, though. Since we didn't know you were coming, we have to buy you a present a bit late." She says. Yugyeom chimes in from his spot on the couch. "Yeah, Jaebum. Maybe if you would have _informed_ us, you could've made mom's life a bit easier. Now you two have to run around, searching for something resembling a Christmas present this close to the holidays."

"Stop that, Yugyeom. I love shopping for presents. Especially for my future son-in-law." Sunhee replies. 

"I'm just saying, Jaebum could've been a bit more thoughtful." He says, a bit of annoyance in his voice. Jaebum rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on. Are you the King of Thoughtfulness or something? Stop trying to start shit this early in the morning." Jaebum shoots back.

"Whatever, Jaebum. Stop thinking you're all high and mighty, and think of others for once. You're so fucking egotistical, and it's giving me a headache." Yugyeom sets down his glass of orange juice, and puts his phone to the side, to look Jaebum in the eyes. "Oh _i'm_ the egotistical one? I'd hate to be any of your friends. Truly. How do they deal with you every day, and actually _enjoy_ it?" Jaebum stands up, walking over to where Yugyeom was sitting.

"Do you just like hearing yourself talk? Jesus fucking Christ, all you do is blab about dumb shit. How the fuck did you even get a boyfriend? Is he fucking deaf or something?" Yugyeom stood up, his height slightly towering over his older brother. 

Jinyoung watched the two of them with wide eyes. He knew Jaebum didn't think that highly of his little brother, but this seemed a bit extreme. He turned back towards the dining room, to see if Sunhee was just as surprised as he was, but Sunhee seemed to have walked off before this began.

"Don't fucking bring Jinyoung into this. He has done nothing to you, and now you're just being fucking unreasonable." Jaebum spits out. Yugyeom rolled his eyes at Jaebum's protective tone.

"Shut the actual fuck up. I'm so tired of hearing your voice. When are you leaving again? Maybe i'll leave too, so i don't have to deal with you next Christmas." Yugyeom replies, the annoyance in his voice turned to straight venom as he spits obscenities at his brother. 

"Be my fucking guest," Jaebum replies. Just then, Sunhee's voice comes from her room, as she walked back into the dining room. "Woah, woah, hey, boys. Calm down. I'm sure we don't mean what we said, alright? Yugyeom, it's not a big deal that we have to go shopping. Jaebum, your boyfriend is here. Stop making a scene." She says, attempting to calm everyone down. Jaebum just groans into his hands. 

"Let's just leave." He says. Sunhee nods. "A little time away could help you. Let's not stew on our anger, all right, boys?" She asks, but neither of the brothers responded.

Yugyeom gets up from the couch, leaving his orange juice on the table, and heading into his room. Jaebum and Sunhee left without another word.

Jinyoung sat by himself in the living room for a few minutes, before Yugyeom came out of his room, sitting back in his same spot, and taking a drink from his orange juice. It seemed like all of his anger from before was completely gone, and he seemed relaxed as he played on his phone. 

Jinyoung felt like apologising. The whole reason the argument was started in the first place was because he was staying with Jaebum, so he felt it was his fault.

"I'm, uh, i'm sorry," Jinyoung said, in the loudest voice he could manage with how anxious he felt, as he played with the hem of his sweater sleeve. Yugyeom looked up from his phone, eyebrows raised.

"Hmm?" He said, looking at Jinyoung. "No, you're fine. Don't worry about it." Yugyeom replied, a small smile on his face. Nora meowed from her cat tower in the dining room. 

Jinyoung nodded, a bit confused as to how Yugyeom was suddenly so calm, when seconds ago he was borderline screaming at Jaebum.

Yugyeom looked at Jinyoung for a few more seconds. "Wanna play Super Smash Bros?" He asked after a few silent seconds. 

Jinyoung nodded tentatively. 

-

"Oh, come _on_ you piece of shit. You so cheated just now." Yugyeom says, throwing down his Playstation controller in defeat. Jinyoung stuck out his tongue at him.

"Nope. Maybe now you'll think twice before making fun of me when i pick Kirby." Jinyoung said teasingly. Yugyeom rolled his eyes playfully. "Whatever. One more round?"

"You've been saying that for the past two rounds, Yugyeom. Just admit it. Kirby is better than any character you've chosen so far." Jinyoung puts his controller down, looking Yugyeom in the eyes. Yugyeom stubbornly shakes his head. "No way. He's like, this little pink dude. How is he better than Bowser? Bowsers literally a freakin' dragon turtle-thing."

"And yet.." Jinyoung gestures to the screen. Yugyeom picks up his controller again. 

"Come on. One more round. Please?" He asks sweetly. Jinyoung dramatically rolls his eyes. " _Fine._ " He replies.

Yugyeom smiles widely, and Jinyoung finds himself smiling too, as they choose their characters, getting ready to battle it out.

They play around three more rounds before Jaebum and Sunhee return home, Jaebum still looking wound up and annoyed. Yugyeom immediately returns to his room whenever they walk through the front door. Jinyoung greets Jaebum with a smile, and asks him if he's alright.

"No, i'm not." Jaebum replies, making his way to his room with Jinyoung as he answers. "Yugyeom just really fucking annoyed me today. He used to be such a nice little brother, but for some reason, he's been really fucking annoying for the past year or two. He's always trying to start shit with me, even when i've done absolutely nothing to him." Jaebum groaned, falling into his bed and rolling onto his face. "I jumpht wafna naph" Jaebum says, his voice muffled from the pillows. 

Jinyoung decides not to tell him about how carefree and laidback Yugyeom seemed after they left, but instead laid down with Jaebum, the two of them napping until Sunhee woke them up for dinner. Whenever they got to the table, it looked like Yugyeom had also decided to hit the hay early, as he had bedhead, and the same tired just-woke-up expression as both Jinyoung and Jaebum. Jungwoo had arrived home from work an hour earlier, but everyone but Sunhee were asleep, so they just greeted him when they arrived at the table.

Jungwoo chuckled at their appearance. "You boys look tired." He said, and Jaebum only nodded.

Sunhee had cooked them some kind of western dish that Jinyoung couldn't remember the name of if he tried, but he remembers it was delicious, and it was the second to last thing he thought of before going back to sleep.

The last thing he thought of, of course, was Yugyeom's smile. The smile he gave Jinyoung when Jinyoung agreed to play another round of the game with him. He found himself smiling as he went to sleep, too, with Nora curled up in the small of his back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> why the fuck is yugyeom so mean to jb?? :V  
> also, these chapter names have absolutely nothing to do with the story, i just like the songs owo


	5. euphoria

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> m,,,mistletoe shenanigans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> is this still relevant even though christmas passed already? i hope so lolol

**8 days until Christmas**

Jinyoung woke up to the sound of his phone vibrating on the nightstand next to Jaebum's bed. He rolled over to grab his phone, and after being momentarily blinded by the light of his phone, read that the time was 6 in the morning.

He went to check his messages, genuinely curious as to who the fuck is up this early and texting him, for that matter.

JJ-Project

**Mark:** are any of y'all up lmao

 **Mark:** i just landed in LA

 **Mark:** oh shit its like 6am in korea isnt it

Jinyoung rolled his eyes, typing out a reply.

JJ-Project

**Mark:** are any of y'all up lmao

 **Mark:** i just landed in LA

 **Mark:** oh shit its like 6am in korea isnt it

yes.

He turned his phone off and put it back down. Nora meowed softly, standing by the door to Jaebum's room. Jinyoung looked over to the door, and Nora meowed again. 

Jinyoung sighed, standing up to let Nora out of Jaebum's room. Just as he reached the door, it opened from the other side softly, and Jinyoung saw Yugyeom standing in the doorframe, standing aside for Nora to walk out. He didn't notice Jinyoung until Jinyoung mumbled a quiet "Hey", both from not wanting to wake Jaebum, and a sudden bout of shyness that overcame him when he saw Yugyeom. 

Yugyeom looked up from where he was watching Nora leave, and smiled softly at Jinyoung, whispering a "Hi" in return. Jinyoung wanted to say more, but suitable words weren't coming to mind, and he ended up just waving awkwardly. Yugyeom waved back, and pointed to the living room, mouthing "Want to hang out?" to Jinyoung. 

Jinyoung nodded, following Yugyeom into the living room, and closing Jaebum's door softly behind him. The two of them sat on the couch together and stayed silent for a few seconds.

Jinyoung looked over to Yugyeom, who seemed deep in thought. "So, hello," Jinyoung said, still keeping his voice quiet, trying not to wake everyone in the house. Yugyeom responded with a wave.

"What were you doing up?' Yugyeom asked. 

"My friend had just landed in the states, and had apparently forgotten about timezones momentarily, so he texted me a few minutes ago, and it woke me up," Jinyoung explained, a hint of playful annoyance in his tone. "What about you?" 

Yugyeom shrugged. "I just kind of woke up. My dad should actually be getting up in about fifteen minutes to go to work." He said. Jinyoung nodded at that. "Cool." He replied.

They sat in silence for a minute or two, neither of them knowing what to talk about. For Jinyoung, it was the sudden feeling in the bottom of his stomach that he couldn't describe, that was making him so awkward in front of Yugyeom. 

Jinyoung really didn't want to make things even more awkward than they already were, but he couldn't stop thinking about earlier, the big fight Yugyeom and Jaebum had gotten into. He wanted to ask what it was about, but he didn't know if it was a sensitive subject or not. His curious side got the best of him, in the end, and he ended up looking over to Yugyeom and asking him.

"I don't mean to be nosy, but what was that whole fight about? The one you and JB had earlier today." Jinyoung brought his knees to his chest, looking at Yugyeom. 

Yugyeom hummed casually. "Just sibling stuff, i guess." He responded. Jinyoung nodded. He definitely wasn't going to press further on the subject, although he _knew_ it wasn't just sibling stuff. Jinyoung had two older sisters, and sure, they've had their fair share of fights, but never with the amount of venom that Yugyeom and Jaebum had.

"Do you like cookies?" Yugyeom asked. Jinyoung looked over, a bit taken aback from the subject change. He laughed softly, and nodded, giving Yugyeom a small push on the arm, and a "Who doesn't like cookies?"

Jinyoung's laugh spread to Yugyeom, and soon, both of them were smiling and laughing at something that really wasn't even funny. "Good, i'm glad," Yugyeom began. "When Mom went out shopping yesterday, she got stuff for us to make cookies today." Jinyoung hummed in response, his smile still set on his face as he looked at Yugyeom. "Sounds fun."

Yugyeom opened his mouth to respond, but before he could say anything, Jungwoo stepped out of his bedroom and saw the two of them on the couch. 

"Well, good morning, boys. What are you two doing up so early? And wheres Jaebum?" He asked in a hushed tone. Yugyeom shrugged, his smile quickly vanished when he turned to speak to his dad. 

"Probably still asleep. Me and Jinyoung only woke up about fifteen minutes ago, and i was just about to go back to sleep." He replied, Getting up from the couch, and heading back into his room, only turning to wave to Jinyoung right before entering. 

Jinyoung was left alone with Jungwoo, and even though he and Yugyeom weren't really doing anything, he felt _guilty_ somehow. He was supposed to be dating Jaebum, and yet, here he was, having early morning chats with Jaebum's _younger brother_. 

If Jungwoo suspected them of anything, though, he didn't show it. He only grabbed his car keys, and waved to Jinyoung, saying a quick "Try and get some more sleep", before heading out the front door. Nora tried to follow him outside, but quickly retreated into Jinyoung's lap once feeling the cool winter air. 

Jinyoung pet her a few times, before gently moving her aside, and going back into Jaebum's room, and trying to lay back down to get some more sleep.

-

His plan to get more sleep didn't exactly work, but he wasn't really tired whenever Jaebum woke up around 8, so he wasn't too bothered. He gave Jaebum a few minutes to actually wake up, and went to freshen up for the day. 

When he returned, Jaebum waved and went to the bathroom to freshen up himself. As Jaebum left, Jinyoung saw Yugyeom exit his room, and he wondered if Yugyeom was able to get more sleep when he went back to bed. 

Jinyoung decided to turn his phone back on, and although it was definitely a mistake, since he was bombarded with notifications from his group chat, he saw that his mom had also texted him.

Mom♡

**Mom♡:**

Hey, Jinyoungie

**Mom♡:**

Call me when you can, I miss you!

He checks when the messages were sent, which only happened to be a few minutes prior, before he pressed the call button, and only waited for a few seconds before his mom picked up the phone. 

_"Oh, hi, Jinyoung! It's nice to hear from you! How are you doing?"_ His mom asked excitedly. Jinyoung smiled into his phone.

"I'm good, Mom. How are you and the girls doing?" He responded, Jaebum walking back into the room with a towel around his neck. 

"Hey, Jinyoung, Mom says she needs us in the kitchen." Jaebum calls to Jinyoung, walking over to his closet to pick out an outfit to wear. 

Jinyoung covered his phone speaker with his hand, "Just one second, JB, i'm on the phone with my mom." He says. 

_"Oh, we're doing good. Sooyoung claims she misses you more than me and Boyoung, but i think she just misses teasing you."_ His mom says playfully, earning a laugh from Jinyoung. 

"Yeah, you're probably right." He says in response, completely ignoring whatever Jaebum was saying to him. _"Well, it sounds like you have company, so i won't keep you much longer. Just wanted to know how you were doing. Bye-bye, we love you."_ She says, and Jinyoung replies with a "Bye, love you guys too", before hanging up. 

He then turned to Jaebum. "What did you say you needed, JB?"

Jaebum had changed into everyday attire, and walked over to Jinyoung. "Come on, Mom wants us in the kitchen." He said, dragging Jinyoung by the wrist.

They walked into the kitchen, just as Yugyeom stepped away from the doorway. 

"Oops!" Sunhee claims, with fake surprise. "I guess you two are under the _mistletoe_ " She says, gesturing upwards. Jaebum looked to Jinyoung, surprise and worry taking over his expression. Jinyoung just shrugged, leaning forward to place a small peck on Jaebum's cheek. 

Sunhee laughs at Jaebum's awkward expression. "Alright, boys, that's enough for now. How do we feel about baking today?" She asked. Yugyeom stood in the corner of the kitchen, his expression uncomfortable, and his stance awkward. It was a clear difference from a few hours ago, when he seemed laid back, and relaxed. 

Jinyoung tried to smile at him, but he only looked away, with the same uncomfortable expression. 

"Oh, baking? Sure. Jinyoung loves making Christmas cookies." Jaebum said, patting Jinyoung on the shoulder. Jinyoung brought his attention away from Yugyeom, and nodded. "I make cookies every year with my sisters." He explains, a smile on his face. 

"That's very sweet." Sunhee says. "I usually make them on my own, but i though it would be fun for the four of us to make them together this year." Jinyoung nodded, smiling. 

"Alright, enough sentiments." Sunhee said, clapping her hands together. "Who wants to make some cookies?"

-

For the entire time they were making and baking the cookies, Yugyeom didn't even look at Jinyoung once. Really, Jinyoung would be fine if he didn't want to be friends, but he was giving mixed signals, and Jinyoung really just wished he knew what Yugyeom was thinking. 

Maybe it was because of Jaebum being there? Was Yugyeom still mad about the fight? Jinyoung really didn't understand. 

He tried focusing on decorating cookies instead of Yugyeom, but it was _hard_ , especially since Yugyeom sat right in front of him at the dining room table, where they were decorating. Suddenly, Jaebum pulled Jinyoung out of his deep thought by calling his name.

When Jinyoung turned to Jaebum, he smeared icing on the tip of Jinyoung's nose. Jinyoung widened his eyes, looking back at a smirking Jaebum. "You did _not_ " He says. Jaebum only sticks his tongue out in response. 

Jinyoung huffs, looking around the table for a napkin, until Yugyeom subtly pushes a box of Kleenex towards him, not looking up once. Jinyoung grabbed one, not realising Yugyeom had pushed them to him, and wiped the icing off of his nose. Jinyoung playfully glared at Jaebum, all thoughts of Yugyeom leaving his head as he tried to put icing on Jaebum's cheek. 

Sunhee watched them from the kitchen with the smile.

"Hey, JB." Jinyoung said once he was done attacking Jaebum with icing. "Look, i made one that looks like you." Jaebum looked over to Jinyoung's cookies with interest, just as Jinyoung pointed to a gingerbread man with only two lines drawn in icing as eyes. 

"Shut the fuck up." Jaebum deadpans, attempting to keep a straight face as he scowled at Jinyoung, but ultimately broke into a wide smile. He only stuck his tongue out at Jinyoung, before going back to decorating. 

"Hey, Jinyoung," Jaebum said after a few minutes of silence. "I made one for you." Jinyoung looked over to Jaebum, who was holding up a sugar cookie with a poorly drawn red-icing heart.

Jinyoung fake-gagged. "Sunhee, do you need any help in there with the baking part? I'm tired of JB now." Jinyoung called to Sunhee, who was currently pulling a batch of cookies out of the oven. 

"No way. That was the last batch" She replied, sticking her tongue out at Jinyoung as she took off her oven mitts. "One of you boys come and get these cookies while i clean up."

Yugyeom immediately stood up, and Jinyoung felt awkward, for some reason, knowing that Yugyeom had seen them act like a couple. Jinyoung just went back to decorating cookies as Yugyeom brought in the pan. Sunhee walked out of the kitchen a few minutes after Yugyeom, sitting next to Jinyoung. 

"Mind if i help you guys decorate?" She asked sweetly. Jinyoung shook his head, a smile forming on his face as he ate a piece of their decorating candy. 

-

With Sunhee helping them decorate, it only took about thirty minutes to finish off the last batch.

"Jinyoung, what do you think?" Sunhee asked as the four of them were finally trying the cookies. Jinyoung smiled around his mouthful of gingerbread and gave Sunhee a thumbs-up.

Jaebum handed Jinyoung the sugar cookie he had decorated before. "Here," He said, "Let me take a photo. Hold up the cookie i made for you." Jinyoung obliged, giving a gummy smile to the camera as he held the cookie. 

Jaebum took a few photos and immediately sent them to the group chat. Sunhee asked him to send them to her as well, and Jaebum nodded.

Yugyeom watched from his spot at the table, taking an uncomfortable bite of gingerbread. Jinyoung was too focused on trying to feed Jaebum the cookie he had decorated for him, not noticing Yugyeom quietly slipping away into his room. 

Sunhee watched Yugyeom leave, noticing the sullen expression on his face. She smiled to Jinyoung and Jaebum, who were still arguing over the gingerbread cookie, before following Yugyeom into his room.

Yugyeom sat on his bed, with Nora purring happily in his lap as he pet her, the same sullen look on his face.

"Hey, honey.," Sunhee began, sitting next to Yugyeom on his bed. "How are you doing?" She asked. Yugyeom shrugged, stopping petting Nora in favour of turning to his mother and smiling.

Nora meowed once unhappily before strolling through his cracked door, into the living room. "I'm good, i guess. Why do you ask?" He questioned.

"Well,-" Sunhee trailed off, trying to decide how to word her sentence nicely. "I saw you in the kitchen, when you were watching Jaebum and Jinyoung." She said. Yugyeom turned away, his eyes slightly widened.

"What do you mean?" Yugyeom asked, even though he almost didn't want to hear the answer. "I wasn't _watching_ them, i just happened to see them acting gross."

Sunhee sighed. "Look, Yugyeom. I know what you're feeling. I understand." She placed a supportive hand on Yugyeom's shoulder, "I'm Jaebum's _mother_ , so i feel the same. It's weird seeing your brother being grown up? Right? I've been hounding him about bringing someone home, but, now that he has, i feel like he's growing up too fast. I know it must be hard for you to experience this, since he's your only brother, but just try to remember, Jinyoung isn't trying to take Jaebum away from our family, but rather, Jaebum is only trying to add Jinyoung into ours." She explained, all the while Yugyeom nodded.

"Yeah, sure. Thanks, mom." He said, earning a smile from Sunhee. 

"Oh, before i forget-" Sunhee said, just as she was about to exit. "There's that Christmas festival if you wanna go check it out tomorrow? Your dad has the next week off of work for Christmas." Yugyeom replied with a "sure", smiling cheerfully as his mother left the room.

As soon as the click of the lock indicated Yugyeom was alone in his room, he rolled over onto his bed face-first, and let out the quietest scream he could manage into an unsuspecting pillow.

-

Sunhee returned to Jinyoung and Jaebum, greeting them with a wave. The both of them had been distracted by Nora, who now sat in Jinyoung's lap as he bit into a sugar cookie. She was _attempting_ to take a nap, but Jaebum had his heart set on bothering her. She hissed at him as a warning, when she felt as though she'd had enough. 

"Boys, how would you feel about going to a Christmas festival tomorrow? We haven't really gone out as a family since buying the Christmas tree." Sunhee said, sitting down at the table.

Jaebum looked to Jinyoung, who only shrugged.

"Sure," Jaebum said. "Sounds fun." 

Sunhee clapped her hands together excitedly. "Great! Then, i'll ask your father when he gets home. He used to enjoy these festivals a lot, back in our dating days." She says.

Jaebum snickers, "Mom, you sound so old when you say that." He says. Sunhee responds by giving him a smack on the arm.

Just then, the front door opened, and Jungwoo walked in. Nora jumped out of Jinyoung's lap to go and greet him. Jungwoo had grocery bags in his hands, and when Nora ran up to him, meowing for attention, he sighed dramatically and placed one of the bags down to give Nora a few pats on the head.

Sunhee walked over to her husband and took a bag out of his hands. "What's this?" She asked.

Jungwoo hummed, as though he was lost in thought. "Well," he began. "I was on my way home, when suddenly, i was struck with the biggest craving for your homemade jjimdak, and i knew i needed to buy the things for it."

Sunhee only smiled, taking the bags into the kitchen. "If you boys could put all of the cookies into the jar please, then you can go off and do your own thing. Dinner will be ready soon." She called.

Jungwoo waved to Jinyoung as he one of the two plates of cookies off of the table. Jinyoung smiled nervously in return. He hurried into the kitchen, putting all of the cookies into a jar near Sunhee, and hurrying back into Jaebum's bedroom, someone following him.

"Your dad makes me nervous, JB." Jinyong says, leaving a moment of silence before laughing quietly, and turning around. He wasn't met with Jaebum's face, but instead, Yugyeom's. 

Yugyeom smiled as well. "Why? He's a dork." He says. "Oh, this is for you. Read it before you sleep. Or don't. Either is fine." Yugyeom says, giving Jinyoung a folded, wrinkled paper. His guise of confidence was slowly breaking down. He walked out of Jaebum's room without another word.

Jaebum walked in a few moments later, waving to Jinyoung. He didn't seem to notice Yugyeom's leaving, or entering, for that matter. Jaebum turned on a CD player on his desk, before collapsing on his bed, and turning on his phone.

"Hey," Jaebum says, after a few moments of silence. "I'm sorry for the mistletoe thing my mom pulled today—" 

"Shut up." Jinyoung said, half-joking. "Really, JB. If i have a problem with anything, i'll tell you. It's not like i wasn't expecting at least _something_ like this." He explained. Jaebum looked conflicted, but ultimately nodded, and focused his attention back on his phone. Jinyoung grabbed his phone as well, not looking forward to the group chat.

JJ-Project

**Mark:** are any of y'all up lmao

 **Mark:** i just landed in LA

 **Mark:** oh shit its like 6am in korea isnt it

yes.

_11:32_

**Jackson:** Goooood morning~

 **Mark:** never use the ~ again

 **Jackson:** Fuck you~ I do what i want~

 **Mark:** blocked.

 **Mark:** its dinnertime. bye fuckers

 **JB:** _[photo message]_

Jinyoung rolled his eyes at his friends messages. Knowing Mark, he had probably _actually_ blocked Jackson, and to be honest, he would've been surprised if Jaebum _hadn't_ sent the photo he took to the group chat.

JJ-Project

**Mark:** are any of y'all up lmao

 **Mark:** i just landed in LA

 **Mark:** oh shit its like 6am in korea isnt it

yes.

_11:32_

**Jackson:** Goooood morning~

 **Mark:** never use the ~ again

 **Jackson:** Fuck you~ I do what i want~

 **Mark:** blocked.

 **Mark:** its dinnertime. bye fuckers

 **JB:** _[photo message]_

_5:49_

mark please unblock jackson i know hes a dumbass but we all agreed to love him anyways

Jinyoung sent the message, and immediately went back to Jackson's private chat. He looked at the group photo again, looking at Yugyeom's smile. It was different than the one he saw when they played the game together. The one in the photo reminded Jinyoung more of his mother's smile when she looked through old baby photos of him and his sisters.

The smile he had seen when Jinyoung agreed to play another round of the game, however, was _different_ , but Jinyoung couldn't place exactly _how_. He found himself missing that smile, though. 

Jinyoung quickly set the group photo as his phone wallpaper. 

He then spent the next hour or so switching between the same two apps on his phone out of boredom, ignoring the group chat messages, and looking at funny photos Jaebum showed him every so often.

Sooner or later, Sunhee called everyone in for dinner, and Jinyoung set his phone on the nightstand, next to the paper Yugyeom had given him, before heading into the dining room with Jaebum.

Yugyeom was setting the table, and Jungwoo was in the kitchen, helping Sunhee. Jinyoung walked over to the table, picking up a few of the plates, and setting them in their places, earning what he assumes to be a smile from Yugyeom, and a quiet "Thank you".

Dinner went by with no special events, and Jungwoo seemed to have eaten his weight in jjimdak.

Jinyoung and Jaebum headed back into his room, staying up a bit longer on their phones, listening to Jaebum's CD. It wasn't until 9 that Jinyoung began getting ready for bed. 

He made Jaebum turn off the music, since he was certain everyone else was in bed by now, and he washed up in the bathroom, after Jaebum. He came back to Jaebum's room, only to find Jaebum asleep already in the bed, or trying to sleep at least. 

Jinyoung changed into his pajamas, and was about to climb into bed himself, before he saw Yugyeom's note on the nightstand, and Yugyeom _did_ say to open it before bed, so Jinyoung decided to see what was inside.

It was just a slip of paper that read _Kitchen?_ , not even signed with Yugyeom's name. Although Jinyoung knew he should probably just ignore it and go to sleep, he was still curious of what Yugyeom could need from him. 

Jinyoung made his way into the living room, careful as to not wake Jaebum, and looked around for any sign of Yugyeom. He walked near the kitchen, and as soon as he reached the doorway, he saw Yugyeom. Yugyeom seemed to see him too, and began to walk toward him.

Although, Yugyeom didn't stop walking once he reached Jinyoung. He walked until Jinyoung's back was flush against the doorframe. "Hello," Yugyeom said. This was a different boy from the one who handed him the note. "You're here." He whispered to Jinyoung. Jinyoung could only nod.

And suddenly, Yugyeom was leaning in, and Jinyoung closed his eyes in anticipation.

Yugyeom's lips were surprisingly soft, and Jinyoung melted against them, immediately pushing into the kiss.

Every fibre of Jinyoung's body was screaming at him about how _wrong_ this was, but the only thing on Jinyoung's mind was Yugyeom's smile, and how he smelled and tasted like vanilla, and he really couldn't bring himself to care how wrong it was, because it felt so right.

Yugyeom pulled away, and Jinyoung chased after him slightly. "That's not, uh, how i expected that to go," Yugyeom whispered. Jinyoung was only half-listening, really. He could only stare at Yugyeom's face, seeing how flushed and embarrassed he looked. 

"What were you expecting?" Jinyoung asked, licking his lips. Yugyeom shrugged.

"Not that, i guess." He said. Jinyoung nodded breathlessly. He really didn't wanna talk right now, he just wanted to kiss the boy in front of him until they both passed out. 

"What was that for?" He asked, instead. Yugyeom pointed upwards. When Jinyoung looked, he saw the mistletoe. "Well," Jinyoung looked back down at Yugyeom. "We're still under it." He said. Yugyeom looked at him, only nodding.

Jinyoung leaned in again, and closed the remaining space between the two of them. Really, it shouldn't be romantic. They were both in their pajamas, and they were in a kitchen, but they way Jinyoung felt Yugyeom's lips move against his own, and the way Yugyeom wrapped his arms around Jinyoung, bringing their bodies closer, made the flush on Jinyoung's cheeks grow tenfold, and his heart beat a million beats per second. 

Jinyoung isn't sure how long they stayed in the kitchen together, but when he returned, he was hazy from the kiss, and fell asleep immediately.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy late holidays uwu i hope that was satisfactory haha  
> 


	6. untold story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> christmas festivities ensue!

**7 days until Christmas**

Jinyoung laid in the bed, the warmth of the blanket engulfing his body. He felt a few light shakes, but ignored them. 

"Jinyoung." A voice called to him. It was familiar, but his sleep-induced brain couldn't place exactly who it was. "Jinyoung." It called again, and Jinyoung was shook again. 

The only person on his mind was Yugyeom, and he couldn't remember the names of anyone else. His eyes slowly opened, not yet adjusted to the light. "Yu-" He begins, expecting to see Yugyeom's face as he awoke, but was instead met with Jaebum's smiling face. 

The first emotion he feels is confusion, but that only lasted a brief period of time, before reality set in, and he realised that he definitely made out with his best friend's brother last night.

"What?" Jaebum asked, crouching by the bed, to be face-to-face with Jinyoung, who was still laying down. "'You' what?" He said.

Jinyoung only shook his head in response. "Nothing." He said after a few seconds of silence. He didn't know how to feel right now.

On one hand, he's here, acting as Jaebum's _boyfriend_ , and therefore should be kissing, or at least pretending to kiss Jaebum, and _not_ his brother. But on the other hand, Yugyeom makes Jinyoung feel _different_. A good different.

He's only known the boy for a few days, but being with him feels like being with a lifelong friend. Jinyoung feels comfortable, feels _himself_.

Jinyoung is brought back into reality when Jaebum pats his back, standing up. "Come on, it's already eleven. You should wake up." Jaebum says.

Jinyoung nods, although he's not exactly listening very well. "Mom said she was taking us to the Christmas festival today, so we should be leaving in a few hours." Jaebum says, and _oh god_ Jinyoung had forgotten about the Christmas festival. He probably won't be able to avoid Yugyeom when they're at the festival, and that probably means awkward glances, which could possibly be suspicious.

Unless someone had already seen them last night? Jinyoung's mind fills with worries as he climbs out of bed. Jaebum seemed to already be dressed and ready for the day, so Jinyoung went ahead and collected his clothing and headed towards the bathroom to shower.

As soon as he exited Jaebum's room, though, Yugyeom exited his own room, with clothes in his arms as well. The two of them made awkward eye contact for a few seconds, before Yugyeom noticed the clothing in Jinyoung's arms. "Oh," Yugyeom said. "Were you planning to shower too?" He asked.

Jinyoung nodded, scared that if he tried to speak, his voice would fail him. "You can go ahead, then," Yugyeom replied. ' _We could shower together_ ' Jinyoung thought. He's not really sure where the thought came from, but he definitely refrained from speaking his thought out loud. Instead, he only said a quiet "thank you", before heading into the bathroom.

-

After taking the fastest shower he could manage, Jinyoung returned to Jaebum's bedroom and checked his messages. There were multiple from the group chat, but he didn't feel like dealing with them. He also had a few messages from his mother, though.

Mom♡

**Mom♡:** Hey Jinyoungie! Boyoung and Sooyoung want to know if you could videochat today? Let me know! Love you.

The text was sent around an hour ago, but Jinyoung assumed the offer was still valid.

Mom♡

**Mom♡:** Hey Jinyoungie! Boyoung and Sooyoung want to know if you could videochat today? Let me know! Love you.

id love to

Jinyoung sat on the bed as he waited for his mom to pick up the call. It hadn't been three rings before his mother's face appeared on his phone screen, and he smiled. "Hi." He said to her. 

"Hello..?" Jaebum responded, confused as to why Jinyoung was greeting him, before he turned to look at him, and saw he was calling his mom. Jinyoung rolled his eyes at Jaebum.

 _"Hi, Jinyoungie!"_ His mom said, before calling his sisters into the room to say hello. _"How have you been?"_ She asks him.

"I'm good. How are you three? I miss you guys." He smiles warmly at the image of his sisters and mother. 

Sooyoung was the first to speak up. _"We're good! Mom got today off work, so we're going to watch Christmas movies."_ Boyoung nodded, and took a sip of a mug she was holding. His mother only smiled.

 _"Oh yeah,"_ Boyoung said, _"Did you hear? Mom doesn't get Christmas off this year."_ There was evident disappointment in her voice.

"Really?" Jinyoung says. "That sucks, mom." He pouts. _"I know, right?"_ Sooyoung replies. 

There was a knock at Jaebum's door, and Yugyeom's head peaked through. "Dad said we need to leave pretty soon." He said. Jaebum nodded. 

"We'll be there in a sec, Jinyoung's on the phone with his mom." He explained. Yugyeom nodded and left, not sparing Jinyoung even a glance. 

_"Who's house are you at, by the way?"_ Sooyoung asks. Jinyoung looks over to Jaebum, who wasn't listening at all.

"Uh," Jinyoung begins, turning back to his phone. "My boyfriend's," He says, hesitation heavy in his voice. 

Boyoung almost drops the hot cocoa she was holding. _"Your what now?"_ She asks.

"Sorry, gotta go. Talk later, love you." Jinyoung says, hanging up the phone. Jaebum laughed at him. "Oh, now you decide to listen." Jinyoung says, annoyed. "My sisters are gonna make fun of me forever."

"Whatever, crybaby. Let's go." Jaebum said, sticking his tongue out at Jinyoung.

-

The five of them piled into the car, with Yugyeom sitting in the very back of the minivan, alone. 

"We're going out for lunch, and then heading to the festival, so i hope everyone is dressed warmly!" Sunhee said, looking in the rearview mirror as she drove. Everyone gave half-hearted responses.

The car stayed quiet after that, spare Jaebum trying to make conversation with Jinyoung, but Jinyoung couldn't focus on anything with Yugyeom in the car. He felt as if he committed a crime, although he wasn't technically dating Jaebum.

He definitely did _not_ like his best friend's brother, even if he _did_ kiss him a little bit last night.

Jinyoung was too absorbed in his thoughts to even realise the car had stopped before Jaebum was lightly shaking him out of his trance.

The stopped at a small diner, somewhere Jinyoung had never heard of before. It was a bit difficult to find seats, since there was an odd number of them, but the final seating arrangement consisted of Jinyoung at the corner of a table, with Jaebum next to him, Yugyeom in front of him, Sunhee next to Yugyeom, and Jungwoo on the farthest end from Jinyoung.

The table was surprisingly quiet, and they went through most of the lunch with no actual conversations, until Sunhee was halfway finished eating, and she turned to look at Jinyoung.

Jinyoung saw his life flash before his eyes, scared that someone saw him and Yugyeom last night. 

He almost breathed a sigh of relief when she instead asked, "So how did you and Jaebum meet?" 

Jinyoung decided to just tell the truth of how he and Jaebum became friends. "Well, I'm a photography major, and he's a film major at the same college." He said. "And we met through a mutual friend."

Sunhee nodded, involved in the story. 

"Who introduced you two?" Jungwoo asked. Jaebum decided to jump into the conversation after taking a sip of his drink. 

"Jackson." He said. Jinyoung nodded. 

"Oh, i think i've met him before! At a school thing you had, right Jaebum?" Sunhee exclaimed, turning to her son. Jaebum nodded. 

"Yep." He replied, taking another drink to signify his ending of the conversation.

The lunch was quiet again, only for another minute, before Yugyeom piped up, and turned to Jaebum. "How long have you guys been together?" He asked, picking at his food.

Jaebum turned to Jinyoung, who gave him a look that said "Make something up."

"Uh, a year." He replied. Jinyoung turned to him with wide eyes. 

Yugyeom almost spit out his drink. "A whole year?" Sunhee asked with astonishment. "And you didn't tell us until now?"

"i can't believe it's already been that long, JB." Jinyoung says to Jaebum, with a hint of venom in his voice, because _really?_ a _year? ___

__"Yep, the, uh, the fourteenth marked it." Jaebum said, digging himself a deeper grave._ _

__"Isn't that the day you arrived?" Jungwoo asked. Jaebum nodded, slowly eating his lunch._ _

__"Wow. Why didn't you tell me?" Jinyoung asked, and _wow_ he was gonna have a talk with Jaebum later._ _

__"It's okay Jinyoung, i forgot our anniversary last year too." Jungwoo half-whispered, earning a playful laugh from Sunhee._ _

__"Yeah, he did. But i still love him." Sunhee pinched one of Jungwoo's cheeks, and the other three decided to ignore them from then on._ _

__-_ _

__Lunch was finished by 2 pm, and the five of them climbed back into the car to make their way to the festival._ _

__The diner happened to be close to where the festival was happening, so the car ride was only about twenty minutes._ _

__It mostly consisted of Jinyoung and Jaebum arguing over text._ _

____

JB

**JB:** im sorry lmao

you dont have the right to be sorry.

a whole year?? what the FUCK jb

im not exactly angry, but jesus christ why couldn't you say something like 'a month'

 **JB:** i p a n i c k e d okay?

okay, well ill give it to you. at least you didn't say some dumbass shit like 'we aren't dating' cause then id REALLY beat ur ass

 **JB:** shut up, you cant even pick me up.

 **JB:** we're here, dummy

Sunhee gave them the rundown of how things were gonna go, which was basically:   
1\. don't do drugs  
2\. meet up at the giant Christmas tree at 8 pm to leave  
3\. don't jump in the ice-cold pond

Everyone agreed to the rules, so Sunhee let them go. 

Jinyoung had never actually _been_ to a Christmas festival before, so he was counting on Jaebum to show him around.

The two of them walked around, looking at all of the available activities, like decorating your own ornament, or writing a letter to Santa. 

There seemed to be a lot of lights around the park, but since it was still afternoon, they weren't turned on yet.

Jaebum dragged Jinyoung over to the letter booth, and Jinyoung saw Yugyeom there as well. Jaebum paid no attention to him and sat down with Jinyoung anyways. 

Jinyoung didn't actually know what to write down for his letter to Santa, so he just drew a turtle.

Yugyeom finished writing before them, and ended up leaving to a different booth.

Jinyoung really hoped there was an opportunity to talk to him alone tonight, and explain things.

-

Jinyoung didn't see Yugyeom for the next few hours, as he was dragged around by Jaebum to try out his favourite cookies, or participate in his favourite game.

It was around 7 pm when Jaebum decided he needed a break, and told Jinyoung he was going to use the bathroom.

Jinyoung nodded, sitting on a nearby bench, while Jaebum made his way to the bathroom. The bathroom was actually a ways away, and Jinyoung contemplated moving closer to it, before someone sat down next to him on the bench.

"Hello," Yugyeom said, a soft, shy smile on his lips. Jinyoung waved. "I saw the Jaebum left, and i just wanted to quickly apologise for my actions last night." He said, his face flushed red. Jinyoung couldn't tell if he was cold or embarrassed.

"You're my brother's _boyfriend_ and you guys have been dating for a _year_. I don't even know what came over me. It was completely inappropriate, and i'm sorry." Yugyeom began to ramble a bit.

"It's fine, Yugyeom," Jinyoung said, mostly only to stop his rambling before he got even more embarrassed.

"Well, no it's not. I kissed you last night when you're in a very happy relationship already. I'm not a homewrecker, i swear." Yugyeom says, dead-serious.

Jinyoung laughs a bit. Yugyeom is cute. Maybe he likes Yugyeom a _little_ bit. A small crush. It'll probably go away in a few days.

"Seriously, 'Gyeom, it's fine," Jinyoung says, not even sure where the nickname came from. Yugyeom nodded, his breath coming out in small puffs of smoke in the cold air.

He pulled a small tube from his pocket.

"What's that?" Jinyoung asked, as Yugyeom uncapped the lid.

"Hmm? Oh, this is chapstick, my lips get super dry in the winter time." Jinyoung nodded, noticing the bold letters that read "CHAPSTICK" on the tube.

"Can i borrow some?" He asked, and _'oh fuck, Jinyoung, are you really gonna be an idiot?'_ He thought to himself, as Yugyeom nodded, and held the tube out to him.

But today, Jinyoung apparently decided to be bold in his actions, and _why the fuck was he doing this it was such a bad idea_.

He completely ignored Yugyeom's outstretched hand, and instead leaned into Yugyeom, their lips meeting gently.Yugyeom softly kissed back, his hand's going to Jinyoung's neck, as the older pulled himself closer.

As if on cue, all of the Christmas lights in the park turned on, illuminating the soft pink glow on their faces, as Jinyoung smiled softly into Yugyeom's lips.

The kiss ended as quickly as it began, though, and Jinyoung pulled away, mesmerised by Yugyeom's soft expression in the midst of the lights for a second, before he whispered a small "Thanks." 

Yugyeom could only nod in response, picking up his chapstick from where he dropped it onto the bench.

"Okay, uh, cool. I should get going." Yugyeom said, standing up from the bench. Jinyoung waved.

Yugyeom waved back, walking backwards for a bit, before he runs into a trashcan.

Jinyoung laughs at him, and Yugyeom sticks his tongue out at Jinyoung before actually leaving to go somewhere else.

Jinyoung sat, and admired the Christmas lights for a few minutes, before Jaebum came back, and the realities of what just happened _again_ actually came into Jinyoung's mind.

He tried to stay calm in front of Jaebum, but he just made out with his best friend's brother _again_. 

Jaebum waved. Jinyoung waved back nervously. "It's cold," Jinyoung says as soon as Jaebum arrives. "We should leave soon."

Jaebum nods. "It is cold. Let's look at the lights first, then we'll leave."

Jinyoung nods.

-

The two of them walk around the park, Jaebum pointing out all of the pretty light displays he sees. Although, Jinyoung can barely pay attention, since his mind is still hazy from the kiss earlier, and if he licks his lips he can taste the vanilla from Yugyeom's chapstick.

It didn't take long for them to circle around to the massive Christmas tree, where Yugyeom was already waiting. They all awkwardly waved. 

"Have you seen mom or dad yet?" Jaebum asked. Yugyeom silently shook his head.

As if on cue, Sunhee and Jungwoo walked up behind them, tapping Jaebum on the shoulder to scare him.

They decide to just pick up some food on the way home for dinner, and climb into the car.

Jinyoung watches as Yugyeom gets in before him and Jaebum, and his mind goes back to thinking about how soft his lips are, and how sweet he tasted.

Jaebum hurries him into the car. "It's cold!" He whines.

One fast food stop later, they arrive at home, and Jinyoung wants to go straight to sleep, but knows he has to eat first. 

He tries to eat fast, but not too fast to where it's _noticable._ He also realises that thinking about how fast he's eating helps him to not think of the kiss.

Yugyeom finishes dinner first, excusing himself to his room. Jinyoung hurries to finish his food, and excuses himself as well, after cleaning up.

Jinyoung is still in his clothes from the day's activities, but he frankly doesn't care as he collapses into the bed. 

He checks his phone once, finding messages from his mom that he seemed to miss earlier.

Mom♡

**Mom♡:** Tell me about your boyfriend!

 **Mom♡:** Jinyoungie! I'm your mother, at least tell me his name? I'm so happy for you!

He looks at the texts and smiles as he types out the first name that came to mind.

Mom♡

**Mom♡:** Tell me about your boyfriend!

 **Mom♡:** Jinyoungie! I'm your mother, at least tell me his name? I'm so happy for you!

his name is Yugyeom, mom.

He quickly turns off his phone, immediately ashamed of sending that message. Jinyoung puts his phone off to the side, on the nightstand, and turns around, attempting to go to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> jinyoung!! yugyeom!!! both of u!!!  
> act like men + talk abt ur feelings!! ):<


	7. searchlight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> stephen king and confessions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im sorry this is actually really bad but ive been stuck in a rut for awhile and just wanted to get it uploaded;;

**6 days until Christmas**

Jinyoung woke up before Jaebum, but he didn't get out of bed. He watched as Jaebum's chest rose and fell, and god dammit he felt so guilty. He doesn't know why he's like this, but he likes Yugyeom. 

He knows he shouldn't considering the situation he was in, but he can't help it. Yugyeom's smile melted Jinyoung's heart, and his lips felt like velvet perfectly moulded into Jinyoung's own. 

Jinyoung sighed heavily, grabbing his phone, and turning it back on to check his messages. The time on his phone read 09:41 am, and he had multiple texts from the group chat, and one from his mother.

Mom♡

**Mom♡:** Tell me about your boyfriend!

**Mom♡:** Jinyoungie! I'm your mother, at least tell me his name? I'm so happy for you!

his name is Yugyeom, mom.

**Mom♡:** He sounds sweet! Send me a photo please! Lol

_9:02_

Jinyoung contemplated for a few seconds, before sending his mother the photo he took with Sunhee, Yugyeom, and Jaebum. She was probably still asleep, so Jinyoung focused his attention on the group chat. He missed a lot of messages that he didn't bother going back to read.

JJ-Project

_9:42_

 **Jackson:** woah~ who's this guy? it's jackson? awake before ten? a damn miracle is who it is

**Mark:** i hate timezones.

**Jackson:** oh wow ur so edgy

**Mark:** consider yourself lucky i unblocked you yesterday, and don't push your limits

**Jackson:** ur mean ):

jackson you're aware its only like 20 minutes till ten?

**Jackson:** timezones, baby~

**Jackson:** its twenty till 9 for me !

Jinyoung rolled his eyes at his friend's messages.

Suddenly, his phone lit up with the "incoming call" screen, and he quickly declined before his ringtone could wake up the still sleeping Jaebum. He sent a message to the culprit.

Jackson

jb is still asleep u fuck!! ur gonna wake him

**Jackson:** o shit my bad dude

**Jackson:** what's been up with y'all though? i haven't gotten any updates recently and im starving man ):

**Jackson:** are y'all in love yet or whatever?

absolutely not

Jinyoung considered telling him about Yugyeom, about how he had fallen for Jaebum's brother, instead. He got another message, interrupting his thinking.

**Jackson:** oh? is your heart,,perhaps,,,already taken?

**Jackson:** by me? (;

i hate you sm

**Jackson:** oh?! your response is telling me,,,you do have someone in your heart! who is it?

my response absolutely did not tell you that and you just said that because you're desperate for drama.

**Jackson:** dont call me out jinyoung

**Jackson:** seriously though, no crushes at school or anything? you never tell me anything ):

What's the worst that could happen? Jinyoung thinks.

ok listen he isn't "in my heart" or whatever. he's just. renting a room temporarily in like a blood vessel or smth

**Jackson:** tell me abt him!!

Jinyoung smiles to himself, thinking about what he could tell Jackson about Yugyeom that wouldn't give him away. His smile, for starters.

everytime i see him smile, my entire brain just melts

**Jackson:** thats so cute

and his eyes do this little crinkle thing when he smiles and it just melts my heart

oh my god don't even start me on his laugh.

have you ever heard an angel laugh?

and his lips are so soft

Jinyoung was rapidly typing, thinking of every part of Yugyeom that he had experienced so far.

**Jackson:** his lips?

**Jackson:** you guys kissed??

**Jackson:** whEN?????

Jackson was one of Jinyoung's closest friends. He wouldn't judge him on this, right?

twice. once yesterday night, and once the night before.

**Jackson:** who aRE YOU KISSING AT JB'S HOUSE, JINYOUNG??

Well, it's too late to back out now.

uh, yugyeom. why?

**Jackson:** yugyeom? as in jb's broTHER YUGYEOM?

ok listen jackson if you ever met him youd wanna kiss him too

i just like him a bit okay? please dont tell jb yet. i dont know how he'd react, and plus, im supposed to be acting as his fake boyfriend.

**Jackson:** yes you are, so why are you kissing his brother, who should be thinking that youre dating jb?

well, he does think im dating jb

**Jackson:** are you gonna tell him you arent?

i dont know yet. i dont know if i actually like him yet, or if its just me clinging to the first attractive person i see.

**Jackson:** i dont know if you saw your messages earlier, but you definitely like him, jinyoung.

**Jackson:** but he doesn't deserve to have you kiss him, and then you turn around and pretend to kiss jb.

i know, dude. i wanna try to talk to him today.

you arent mad at me, right?

**Jackson:** never (: go talk to ur mans! love u, talk later

love u too.

Jaebum stirs beside him, and Jinyoung turns to him. "Morning, sleepyhead." He says. Jaebum hums in response, stretching out his arms before sitting up.

"Mornin'" He replies. "How long you been up?" Jaebum asks, his hair tangled on his head.

Jinyoung shrugged and set his phone to the side. "Only like, fifteen minutes." He stared over at Jaebum, who only nodded, sleep still clouding his mind. Jaebum and Yugyeom didn't exactly look alike, but for some reason, whenever Jinyoung saw Jaebum, he could only think of his friend's little brother instead. 

Jinyoung had no idea how he expected to be able to talk to Yugyeom alone today. He was here, as Jaebum's boyfriend. Jinyoung regrets ending the conversation with Jackson so soon. He needed emotional support right now, and can't exactly ask Jaebum for help with talking to Yugyeom.

"We should probably get up, huh?" Jaebum asks jokingly, running a hand through his messy hair as Jinyoung chuckled.

"Yeah, probably. I feel gross after falling asleep in my clothes from yesterday." He said, looking down at his dishevelled outfit. Nora meowed loudly from her spot on Jaebum's desk, announcing her presence. "You can shower first," Jinyoung said, getting up from the bed to give Nora a few head pats. 

Jaebum hummed in response, sleepily making his way to the bathroom. Jinyoung watched him leave, still petting Nora.

"Nora, what am i supposed to tell Yugyeom?" Jinyoung kneels down to be face-to-face with the cat. "I wanna tell him the truth, but i also don't want to fuck up JB's Christmas. I was only supposed to pretend for a few weeks, then leave." He complained. Nora only purred in response. Jinyoung sighs. "You're no help." He says.

-

Jinyoung took a relatively quick shower, although he wasn't exactly paying attention to the shower. He was racking his brain, trying to figure out if he wanted to tell Yugyeom the truth. 

It obviously seems like a better idea. Jinyoung could just ask him not to tell—let him in on the secret too. On the other hand, if he were to do that, he would have to tell Jaebum about it, and that wasn't exactly a conversation he wanted to have.

Him and Jaebum sat in Jaebum's room, Jinyoungs hair still slightly damp from his shower. 

The time on Jinyoung's phone read "10:53" as he pretended to mess around on his phone, the Yugyeom issue still crowding his mind. 

As if summoned by Jinyoung's thoughts, Yugyeom poked his head through Jaebum's door, his eyes trying to avoid Jinyoung, who sat on Jaebum's bed, next to a sleeping Nora.

"Do you guys want to watch a movie?" He asked, a slight hesitance to his voice. 

"What movie?" Jaebum asked, earning a shrug from Yugyeom.

"Your choice." He says, "I'm just bored, and i thought watching a movie could be fun." Jinyoung looks to Jaebum, who waits a few seconds, before ultimately nodding his head. 

"Sure, sounds fun. Let's watch something scary." He replied. Jinyoung looked at Jaebum incredulously. 

"Something scary?" Jinyoung asked. "At eleven in the afternoon?" Jaebum nodded, a grin sitting on his face. 

Yugyeom smiled softly. "Sure, i'm down." He said. Jinyoung felt his heart rate increase, just listening to Yugyeom speak with a smile in his voice like that.

"Okay, fine, yeah. Let's watch a scary movie." Jinyoung agrees. 

Him and Jaebum follow Yugyeom into the living room, sitting down on the couch and waving hello to Sunhee, who sat at the dining room table reading mail.

Yugyeom and Jaebum ended up choosing 'Pet Sematary', which Jinyoung wasn't excited for one bit. Horror wasn't exactly his favourite genre. 

This wasn't the first time Jinyoung had watched horror movies with Jaebum—Mark is a huge horror enthusiast, and it's all they'd watch at sleepovers—but, it's his first time watching this specific movie, so he was a bit jumpy, to say the least.

While they started the movie side-by-side on the couch, Jinyoung ended up hooking onto Jaebum's arm, and burying his face in Jaebum's shoulder at every jumpscare. 

The movie was more than halfway through when suddenly, Yugyeom stood up, said a quick "I'm going to my room.", before leaving. The only other sound that indicated his presence was the soft click of his door shutting. 

Jinyoung sits for a minute or two, his mind not focusing on the movie anymore, all of a sudden. If Yugyeom was in his room, then Jinyoung could sneak in, and talk to him about everything. Jinyoung could potentially tell him the truth, and he wouldn't have to worry about it anymore.

His body worked faster than his mind, as he suddenly stood up, turning to Jaebum. "I'll be right back. Nature is calling." He says quickly. Jaebum only nods, his attention focused elsewhere.

Jinyoung hurries down the hallway, walking straight past the bathroom, and into Yugyeom's room, where Yugyeom was sitting on his bed, his face buried in his knees.

"Hello." Jinyoung says, making sure to shut the door behind him. Yugyeom's head shoots up.

"Hi." He replies, confused as to why Jinyoung was standing in his doorway. Jinyoung waves awkwardly.

"I just wanted to talk about some things." Jinyoung said, sounding very "disappointed-mother"-esque. Yugyeom nodded. 

"Is it about the kisses?" Yugyeom asked embarrassedly, looking over to an equally-flustered Jinyoung. Jinyoung shrugged.

"Kind of? Just, everything in general, really." Jinyoung replied, his ears turning slightly red from the confrontation. He walked over to Yugyeom, talking a seat on the edge of his bed. 

"I really am sorry about all that. I swear, i'm not usually a homewrecker like this," Yugyeom says, heavy concern lacing his voice. Jinyoung shakes his head.

"But i dont want you to be sorry, is the problem," Jinyoung says, almost instantly regretting it as soon as it came out of his mouth. Yugyeom tilted his head in slight confusion.

"Jinyoung, you've been dating my brother for a _year_. An entire year. It was irresponsible of me to act on dumb feelings that i hadn't even had for more than a day, like i did." He said, turning to look at Jinyoung.

It could be this simple. Jinyoung could simply tell Yugyeom that 'No, we haven't been dating for a year. We aren't dating, and i'm not interested in dating him.' But he doesn't. Of course he doesn't.

"I don't love him." He says, instead. His voice can't be anything more than a loud whisper, and he's looking down, embarrassed and ashamed that he couldn't just come clean. 

"What?" Yugyeom asked, although he had heard Jinyoung just fine. "Why not..?" 

Jinyoung shrugged. "I don't know. I _should_ , right? I should love him more than anything, but i _don't_." He finally looked up, making eye contact with Yugyeom, and giving him a small smile. "I haven't even known you for long, but i think i want to be with you." He whispered out, still looking at the bewildered Yugyeom.

"I don't think i could do that to my brother, Jinyoung. You're his everything." Yugyeom replied, his voice small and unsure. 

"I'm not asking you to do anything. I just wanted to talk. Let you know what's up." Jinyoung replied.

Everything happened too fast for Jinyoung to process, but suddenly, they're kissing and its soft, sweet, and slow. 

Yugyeom tastes like faint mint and vanilla, and Jinyoung's hands have somehow found their way into Yugyeom's hair, messing up the mass of waves. 

There was nothing sexual about the kiss, it was romantic and sweet and Jinyoung tried to push every thought and feeling he had had about Yugyeom for the past few days into it.

It didn't last long, though, because Yugyeom pulled away, his cheeks dusted pink. "I think i like you, Jinyoung." He whispered, looking Jinyoung in the eyes.

Jinyoung smiled. "I think i like you too, 'Gyeom." He whispered back, earning a big smile from Yugyeom. "But, what about what you said? About not being able to hurt JB?" He asked. Yugyeom shrugged.

"I thought i couldn't, but this arrangement could only help me in the future." He replied vaguely. Jinyoung nodded, still a bit lost.

"I should head back." He says. Yugyeom nods, still smiling widely, even waving as Jinyoung left to return to the living room.

-

Jinyoung ended up finishing the movie with Jaebum, although he didn't cuddle into him as much during the jumpscares. 

"Hey, come 'ere, Mark's bugging me for a photo." Jaebum said, holding out his arm for Jinyoung to get into the frame with him. Jinyoung obliged, giving a small smile to his phone camera. 

The two of them sat on the couch for a few minutes. Jinyoung was looking at funny photos, and ignoring the group chat messages, and Jaebum was messaging in the group chat.

They only had a few moments of quiet, however, as Jungwoo walked in through the front door, bags on his arms. "Hey, Dad." Jaebum called, waving. "Need help?" He asked, gesturing to the plastic bags weighing down Jungwoo's arms.

"Yes, please," Jungwoo said, his voice strained from trying to carry all of the weight. They both hurried to help him carry the bags in.

"Why did you buy so much meat?" Jaebum asked, setting the bags down on the kitchen table. 

Jungwoo walked up next to him, setting down more bags. "We're going to be barbequing tonight, so i thought i'd get some more meat to have." 

"Ah. Should i put it in the fridge?" Jaebum asked, earning a nod from Jungwoo. Jinyoung followed Jaebum over to the fridge, stacking the meat packages on top of each other carefully. 

Jinyoung tried to avoid Jungwoo's gaze as the two of them headed into Jaebum's bedroom. 

Nora sat on Jaebum's bed, although not sleeping anymore. She meowed softly as Jinyoung and Jaebum entered. Jinyoung pet her gently.

Jinyoung decided to text Jackson, updating him on what had happened.

Jackson

hi

i talked to yugyeom

The reply came almost instantly.

**Jackson:** what happened????

well i told him i didn't love jb, and then we kissed

**Jackson:** you told him you werent dating jb?

well not exactly

There was a knock on Jaebum's door, and a few seconds later, Jungwoo poked his head into the room. "I request your help in cooking meat." He says. Jaebum hums in agreement. "Be there in a sec." He says.

Jinyoung sets his phone down, ignoring the new texts from Jackson, and walks into the kitchen with Jaebum. 

Jungwoo had gotten out a large portable grill for them to cook on, and Yugyeom was already beginning to grill a few pieces on it. Jungwoo was standing at the fridge, grabbing a few more packages of pork and beef. 

Jinyoung and Jaebum immediately get to work, Jinyoung heading straight for the grill to assist Yugyeom.

The four of them quickly get into a fast rhythm of cooking, with Yugyeom and Jinyoung grilling, and Jaebum and Jungwoo cutting the meat once it's grilled. 

Nobody really talks to one another, but when he's sure nobody's looking, Jinyoung shoots a wink at Yugyeom, who tries to stifle a laugh.

-

All of the meat is eventually cooked, and Jungwoo goes off to bring Sunhee to the table to eat. 

This dinner, unlike the others they'd had, was lively. It was full of small talk and laughter. At one point, Sunhee had fed Jungwoo a piece of the beef. Jinyoung looked over to Yugyeom, pointing to the pork belly on his plate. Yugyeom nodded, picking up a piece at the same time as Jinyoung. Maybe they couldn't exactly feed one another, but this was good enough, Jinyoung thinks as they eat the piece of pork at the same time. 

Dinner was over too soon, though, and Sunhee and Jungwoo began to pick up plates and cups to do dishes. 

Everybody retired to their rooms, changing into sleepwear, and brushing their teeth. 

Jinyoung thought that, maybe he should respond to Jackson's texts from earlier. But he was also tired from all of the events that transpired that day, and he didn't want to feel guilty for not telling Yugyeom the truth. He just wasn't ready yet. 

If they get any more serious than just two teenagers with a crush, then Jinyoung will tell him, he promises himself. He can't live in the lie forever.

Jaebum was the first to fall asleep since he was the first to lay down. Jinyoung tried to follow suit. His brain was tired, but his mind was excited and awake. He couldn't sleep.

He rolled over, looking at the sleeping Jaebum. He poked Jaebum a few times on the cheek, just to make sure he was really asleep, before standing up from the bed, and tiptoeing out into the hallway.

Maybe this wasn't the best idea, but Jinyoung didn't really care. 

His heart jumped out of his chest as he stood outside of Yugyeom's door, hand on the doorknob.

A thought raced through his mind before he opened the door. What were they? They definitely didn't make anything clear earlier in the day, although they very obviously made out. They weren't boyfriends, but they also weren't 'just friends'. 

Jinyoung carefully opened the door, and walked into Yugyeom's room. 

Yugyeom was laying in bed, so Jinyoung walked over, and draped himself over the sleeping form, earning a small grunt from below him. 

"Hi," He whispers. "I cant sleep." 

Yugyeom looks up at him with sleepy eyes. " So why did you decide to come in here?" he asked. Jinyoung shrugged.

"'Cause i wanted to." He replied, leaning down to graze Yugyeom's nose with his own. Yugyeom smiled.

"You should go back to bed." He said. Jinyoung shook his head.

"I have to ask you something first." He said. "What are we, now?" 

Yugyeom looked at him softly. "What answer are you hoping for?" He asked.

"I'm not sure. I like you, and you like me." Jinyoung replied. "Right?"

Yugyeom nodded. "Yeah, but there's also Jaebum." Jinyoung huffed at the mention of his best friend.

"He's not important in this conversation," Jinyoung replied, earning a small laugh from Yugyeom. "I wanna date you, but i'm worried about the outcome. I'm worried about what it could turn into for JB."

Yugyeom shrugged. "I thought he wasn't important in this conversation." He said, earning a small sigh from Jinyoung. "How about this, let's not label anything? Let's just see where this takes us." Yugyeom suggests. 

Jinyoung thinks for a few seconds. "No labels?" He asked, and Yugyeom nodded. "Yeah, okay. We can do that. No labels."

He smiled, softly kissing the tip of Yugyeom's nose. "No labels." Yugyeom repeated, smiling as well. "You should go to bed, now, though." He says. 

Jinyoung nods. "Yeah, you're right." He rolled off of Yugyeom, standing up, and heading for the door. "Goodnight." He called.

"Goodnight," Yugyeom called back.

Jinyoung smiled, walking back to Jaebum's room quietly, and laying back down in the bed. He still wasn't exactly able to fall asleep right away, but he didn't exactly care, his mind too focused on the excitement of his "forbidden love"-esque relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope that was satisfactory hfnhfnghn-  
> every comment and kudos adds a year to my lifespan !!


End file.
